And I saw that the Lamb had opened one of the seven seals. And I heard one of the four living creatures saying, in a voice like thunder: “Come!”And I saw, and behold, a white horse. And he who was sitting upon it was holding a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he went forth conquering, so that he might prevail. (Revelation 6:2)
That scroll contains the whole series of divine decrees that must be accomplished in human history to make perfect justice prevail. If the scroll remains sealed, these decrees can be neither known nor implemented, and wickedness will continue to spread and oppress believers. Hence, the need for authoritative intervention: it would be made by the slain and risen Lamb...to take the scroll and to open its seals. (Saint John Paul II, Audiences, 2004)
From what has been said it is also evident, that the Whiteness of the Sun's Light is compounded all the Colours wherewith the several sorts of Rays whereof that Light consists, when by their several Refrangibilities they are separated from one another, do tinge Paper or any other white Body whereon they fall. For those Colours ... are unchangeable, and whenever all those Rays with those their Colours are mix'd again, they reproduce the same white Light as before. (Sir Isaac Newton, Optics)
But not yet have we solved the incantation of this whiteness and learned why it appeals to the soul; and more strange and far more portentous-why, as we have seen, it is at once the most meaning symbol of spiritual things, nay, the very veil of the Christian's Deity; and yet should be as it is the intensifying agent in things most appalling to mankind. (Herman Melville, from Moby Dick)
“Then, I saw in the distance great legions approaching. In the foreground I saw a man on a white horse. Prisoners were set free and joined them. All the enemies were pursued. Then, I saw that the Church was being promptly rebuilt, and she was more magnificent than ever before." (Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich)
The Mother of God goes over them,
Walking on wind and flame,
And the storm-cloud drifts from city and dale,
And the White Horse stamps in the White Horse Vale,
And we all shall yet drink Christian ale,
In the village of our name.
The Mother of God goes over them,
On dreadful cherubs borne;
And the psalm is roaring above the rune,
And the Cross goes over the sun and moon . . .
(Chesterton, The Ballad of the White Horse)
***
"What does your heart tell you?"
Introduction
Sit back and enjoy my interpretation of the first seal of Revelation. I will open up and weave an epic interpretation of the white horse and rider which is unique. You may not agree with me. You may be challenged or offended, yet I guarantee you will not find an understanding like this in any other book, article, or online webpage, whether Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, etc. The core insight is original. After having studied some systems of eschatology, and having witnessed so many interpretations gone wrong, I uttered in my heart, "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark."
And so I conceive this new interpretation. The word is simple, but I will be emitting a host of concepts, brainstorms, and digressions. I draw from all sorts of sources. And I will attempt to synthesize into one wholly unique interpretation that is bold and outside the box. And assuming Faith, I will reason through and justify my interpretation.
Sit back and enjoy my interpretation of the first seal of Revelation. I will open up and weave an epic interpretation of the white horse and rider which is unique. You may not agree with me. You may be challenged or offended, yet I guarantee you will not find an understanding like this in any other book, article, or online webpage, whether Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, etc. The core insight is original. After having studied some systems of eschatology, and having witnessed so many interpretations gone wrong, I uttered in my heart, "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark."
And so I conceive this new interpretation. The word is simple, but I will be emitting a host of concepts, brainstorms, and digressions. I draw from all sorts of sources. And I will attempt to synthesize into one wholly unique interpretation that is bold and outside the box. And assuming Faith, I will reason through and justify my interpretation.
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| The White Horse and Rider by Peter Olsen |
Section I
Equus Albus
First, let us take a quick look at the Latin translation of Revelation. The word albus is commonly translated to English as white. From albus we get the English word 'alb', a name for the long white linen garment Roman Catholic priests don underneath the chasuble. Its like the priest clothes himself with an unstained wedding garment for the feast of the Body and Blood of our Lord which he presides over and celebrates with the Church. This white garment signifies a state of sanctifying grace in relation to God for the wearer and/or holiness.
"equus albus" is used in Revelation 6:2 which is our subject, as well as 19:11 where John describes the Return of Jesus:
Et vidi cælum apertum, et ecce equus albus, et qui sedebat super eum, vocabatur Fidelis, et Verax, et cum iustitia iudicat, et pugnat. (Revelation 19:11)
Et vidi: et ecce equus albus, et qui sedebat super illum habebat arcum, et data est ei corona, et exivit vincens ut vinceret. (Revelation 6:2)
White Horse in Context of Science
White horses have un-pigmented skin and a white hair coat. So in other words the atoms and molecules . . . the very cells comprising skin and hair coat of these horses arrange in a manner to relay light signals at various frequencies of our visible spectrum; all those frequencies that correspond to the colors of a rainbow. Our eyes and brain work to understand their spectrum and we name this relation: white. I will revisit this theme at the end of this section.
But the so called true white horses, especially those which carry the dominant white genes (W) are rare. So already we see the concepts of rarity and value in context of the world. A human could easily conceive these living objects as set apart among their peers, as special, as objects of favor. White horses are precious, uncommon, unequal, etc. It is good to have them on Earth.
In context of Heavenly conceptions, the color white could represent Divine election. That which white horse and rider figuratively reference, is favored, graced, anointed, stimulated, perfected, in some way set apart as unequal, etc. by God for some aim. This Divine election could be assumed to a movement of men on the Earth in the symbol of a horse, led by the rider. But in any case, the horse's color could reveal election in a theological definition.
White Horses in Myth and Art
White horses figure prominently in many a tale. Pegasus is the famous white horse with wings of Grecian myth. The story goes he was captured by Bellerophon near the fountain Peirene with the help of Athena and Poseidon. Pegasus allows the hero to ride him so as to defeat a monster, the Chimera, before realizing many other exploits. Later, Zeus placed him up in the sky, transforming him into the constellation of the same name. But the significant concept here is that the white horse serves and carries the hero. This concept or similar is taken up in other stories. These themes could be respected by Heaven. Jesus will occasionally play on worldly myths, and customs, for he is not only God but man. But again the important concept to take from this is that the white horse carries the warrior-hero or the good prince in shining armor, not the evil enemy.
Pegasus carrying a Grecian Hero
Next we have the unicorn, a horse-like animal, always thought of or depicted as white. In stories of Medieval and Renaissance origin the wild unicorn served as a symbol of purity. It could only be captured by a virgin and in fact there are some statues, pictures and reliefs of the Blessed Virgin Mary holding a unicorn:
Mary holding a unicorn
Patron Saints on White Horses
The two patron Saints James and George are traditionally depicted as riding white steeds. There are even depictions of Saint Martin of Tours, who like George was a Roman soldier. He is riding a white steed when he cut off half his Roman cape in donation to the poor man. These artistic concepts could have easily been inspired by chapter 19 of Revelation where John describes the armies from Heaven seated on white horses, following Jesus who himself is on a white horse.
Saint Martin of Tours
In Islam, there is a famous white steed named al-Buraq (lightning). Buraq transports Abraham and the supposed prophet Muhammad.
So you see, harbinger or not, so far the white horse has many gold stars, both worldly and heavenly, in favor of it representing good and not evil. If one is evil, or slack in virtue, perhaps the white horse is an ill omen. Yet for the good, the white horse is not only precious enough to carry generals in victorious parades, but is persistently used as a symbol of goodness, election, purity, holiness, courage, perfection, etc.
If we assume white in context of physics and re-conceptualize in context to a life inspired by the Spirit or in context of God and Heaven: white figuratively represents an integration and exercise of all the virtues. All the virtues mingle together to perfection in God, Jesus, Mary and the saints and this is figured in the color white. As a physical object that appears white, thoroughly reflects all or a variety of frequencies corresponding to the colors of a rainbow, so does an object that is white represent a person who emanates all the virtues as a set, mingling as one. In a physical context, there is no deprivation or lack of any visible frequency/color from an object appearing white. The colors mix together to white (so to speak). In a heavenly context a white object is synonymous with perfection. There is no deprivation or weakness. One can do all things who is white.
I'm surprised that no interpreter that I have ever read has picked this concept out. Herman Melville seems to muse on this in his masterpiece Moby Dick (quoted above). Why the white garments, the white horses, etc.? Why does Mary always wear a white dress (usually draped with a blue veil). The answer is perfection of all the virtues, of all that is good, a fullness, a completeness . . . no harm, deprivation, weakness or blemish of any manner whatsoever. All the virtues and all possible Divine graces combine together to perfection and fullness like the all the frequencies to white.
* please note I understand that a source object can possibly emit white light by mixing a few frequencies corresponding to the primary colors or even as little as two or three frequencies. But many white light emit at all visible frequencies (e.g. the Sun). So I played off of the common misconception which is fine for our purposes.
Section II: The Identity of the Rider
In this section I will analyze a spectrum of common interpretations of the rider's identity. In this you will begin to see glimpses of my understanding.
Is the Rider of the White Horse Jesus or a Saint?
A common interpretation of Roman Catholics has the rider of the white horse identified as Christ Jesus (with the horse as his followers, and the bow as his Gospel). This teaching was not a consensus among the Church Fathers. Supposedly, it was first suggested by Saint Irenaeus in his work Against Heresies (Book IV, 21:3) written back in the second century. As a side note, Irenaeus conceived the four horsemen as righteous. To this day his interpretation has been regurgitated by many an interpreter. This is the type of interpretation one will find in Catholic Bible footnotes such as the Haydock, Navarre and many other conservative commentaries. In addition Pope Pius XII suggested this interpretation in an address given in 1946.
The interpretation of Christ Jesus is promising and well connected since toward the end of the book, and at the culmination of the bowls [nested into the trumpets and seals] John has a vision of Jesus as well as all the saints returning on white chargers. This is well noted by many interpreters. However, if we are to apply critical thinking and contextual analysis in our meditations, this interpretation is clearly circular, since it is Jesus who breaks the Seal and unleashes the first horseman so to speak. If Jesus breaks the first Seal, initiating the events described by John, it would seem that he crowns HIMSELF to conquer. This is nonsense. Jesus does not crown himself like arrogant Bonaparte. The Holy Father crowned Jesus. But in accord with the Holy Father’s plan he has not yet chosen to make manifest his reign and exercise his reign in an explicit mode on Earth other than through the Pope. He desires that the Church also overcome the world by suffering like he did.
In spite of the above reasoning, it is significant to note that both Jesus and the saints are seen by John to ride white horses upon their Return at the culmination of the events. This is later mentioned in chapter 19. So the further I work my way into this interpretation, the clearer it seems to me that the white horse and rider is good, both in the context of worldly concepts as well as the Word of God. What NO ONE seems to consider is that a new Saint, a man who would foreshadow the Return of Jesus the King, a man who would be a New Testament king, a man who would be anointed by God like David and even Cyrus of old; is the rider of the white horse, and perhaps his followers or associates are represented by the horse itself. It is stunning to me that no one seems to even consider this line of interpretation. It betrays a lack of thinking outside the box in Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant alike.
Surprisingly, the only interpretation that seems to come close to this sort of conception is by a Muslim scholar who lived centuries ago. He saw the rider as synonymous with the Madhi, a figure supposedly prophesied by Mohammed and various other Imams who followed. The Madhi is scripted in the Hadith. He is to arrive at the End Times. Like a saint, the Mahdi is supposed to come before Jesus, overcome evil men, uproot governments, help convert many and establish a worldwide peace through his kingdom which stretches from East to West. He is a reformer. And if I am to think liberally, this Mahdi (and I hope this especially offends ultra-conservative Catholics and Protestants) seems similar to the Great Catholic Monarch of Prophecy! I will return to this thought at the end of the article. I will take the view of a modern peaceful practicing Muslim who I suppose would be outraged by the practices of the apocalyptic sects of Islam that have arisen in our times with their tyrannical leaders, e.g. ISIS.
Apocalyptic sects are one of several groups that the Great Catholic Monarch will destroy during his mission. And in general any and all governments spread across Europe, the Middle East and maybe North Africa. He will also conquer whatever is left of the Holy Land by the time he arrives. Surely, the Israelis are not snow white. He will conquer nations and uproot republics, across Europe which was once Christian, even if they foolishly attempt to resist him by arms. He will be a new legifer, for an immense kingdom spanning continents. His mission marks a profound redirection toward the Return of Jesus for the entire Church and world. And he is a worthy interpretation of the first seal. But also similar to a liberal twist of the Islamic Mahdi, which to me is interesting.
But it is baffling that no one has even put forth an argument that this rider of the white horse could be a saintly king of the New Testament. Later in the eleventh chapter, when we get to the seventh trumpet nested in the seventh seal, John hears many voices in Heaven saying:
A common interpretation of Roman Catholics has the rider of the white horse identified as Christ Jesus (with the horse as his followers, and the bow as his Gospel). This teaching was not a consensus among the Church Fathers. Supposedly, it was first suggested by Saint Irenaeus in his work Against Heresies (Book IV, 21:3) written back in the second century. As a side note, Irenaeus conceived the four horsemen as righteous. To this day his interpretation has been regurgitated by many an interpreter. This is the type of interpretation one will find in Catholic Bible footnotes such as the Haydock, Navarre and many other conservative commentaries. In addition Pope Pius XII suggested this interpretation in an address given in 1946.
The interpretation of Christ Jesus is promising and well connected since toward the end of the book, and at the culmination of the bowls [nested into the trumpets and seals] John has a vision of Jesus as well as all the saints returning on white chargers. This is well noted by many interpreters. However, if we are to apply critical thinking and contextual analysis in our meditations, this interpretation is clearly circular, since it is Jesus who breaks the Seal and unleashes the first horseman so to speak. If Jesus breaks the first Seal, initiating the events described by John, it would seem that he crowns HIMSELF to conquer. This is nonsense. Jesus does not crown himself like arrogant Bonaparte. The Holy Father crowned Jesus. But in accord with the Holy Father’s plan he has not yet chosen to make manifest his reign and exercise his reign in an explicit mode on Earth other than through the Pope. He desires that the Church also overcome the world by suffering like he did.
In spite of the above reasoning, it is significant to note that both Jesus and the saints are seen by John to ride white horses upon their Return at the culmination of the events. This is later mentioned in chapter 19. So the further I work my way into this interpretation, the clearer it seems to me that the white horse and rider is good, both in the context of worldly concepts as well as the Word of God. What NO ONE seems to consider is that a new Saint, a man who would foreshadow the Return of Jesus the King, a man who would be a New Testament king, a man who would be anointed by God like David and even Cyrus of old; is the rider of the white horse, and perhaps his followers or associates are represented by the horse itself. It is stunning to me that no one seems to even consider this line of interpretation. It betrays a lack of thinking outside the box in Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant alike.
Surprisingly, the only interpretation that seems to come close to this sort of conception is by a Muslim scholar who lived centuries ago. He saw the rider as synonymous with the Madhi, a figure supposedly prophesied by Mohammed and various other Imams who followed. The Madhi is scripted in the Hadith. He is to arrive at the End Times. Like a saint, the Mahdi is supposed to come before Jesus, overcome evil men, uproot governments, help convert many and establish a worldwide peace through his kingdom which stretches from East to West. He is a reformer. And if I am to think liberally, this Mahdi (and I hope this especially offends ultra-conservative Catholics and Protestants) seems similar to the Great Catholic Monarch of Prophecy! I will return to this thought at the end of the article. I will take the view of a modern peaceful practicing Muslim who I suppose would be outraged by the practices of the apocalyptic sects of Islam that have arisen in our times with their tyrannical leaders, e.g. ISIS.
Apocalyptic sects are one of several groups that the Great Catholic Monarch will destroy during his mission. And in general any and all governments spread across Europe, the Middle East and maybe North Africa. He will also conquer whatever is left of the Holy Land by the time he arrives. Surely, the Israelis are not snow white. He will conquer nations and uproot republics, across Europe which was once Christian, even if they foolishly attempt to resist him by arms. He will be a new legifer, for an immense kingdom spanning continents. His mission marks a profound redirection toward the Return of Jesus for the entire Church and world. And he is a worthy interpretation of the first seal. But also similar to a liberal twist of the Islamic Mahdi, which to me is interesting.
But it is baffling that no one has even put forth an argument that this rider of the white horse could be a saintly king of the New Testament. Later in the eleventh chapter, when we get to the seventh trumpet nested in the seventh seal, John hears many voices in Heaven saying:
And the seventh Angel sounded the trumpet. And there were great voices in heaven, saying: “The kingdom of this world has become our Lord’s and his Christ’s, and he shall reign forever and ever. Amen.
So there is this concept that the events are progressing toward an official and explicit reign of Jesus over the world as King. Although God is in control of everything, and certainly Jesus is King of the Earth, he is still commissioned in a sort of silent phase, hidden in Heaven and in the Eucharist until he returns again. He is allowing his holy assembly on Earth to help him in their own ways until he comes a second time assuming his role as King.
Yet in the Old Testament Church and world, the Son of God had kings and leaders such as David, Josiah and Judas Maccabeus help prepare for his Incarnation, his First Coming to Earth. They were anointed, and they fought bloody battles. God even anointed a gentile, Cyrus the Great, who in his own way helped prepare for his Incarnation by releasing the Jews and commissioning them to rebuild the Temple. So it stands to reason that there would be one who is anointed in the New Testament so as to help prepare Church and world for the Second Coming of Jesus. And if this were true, there is no better place than to prophetically describe him than in a New Testament Scripture.
Is the Rider on the White Horse Antichrist?
Some Roman Catholics interpret Jesus. Some Protestants, on the other extreme end of a spectrum, interpret Antichrist. One will find this sort of an interpretation in the NET Bible, from Billy Graham, and in books such as The Rider on the White Horse: A Study of Revelation 6:1-8 by M. Rissi.
And Protestants have a difficult time explaining how Antichrist, prophesied to be the most evil man ever to live, is riding a white horse, usually figuratively associated with heroes, election, purity, perfection, Jesus, the Virgin Mary, saints and so on. Apparently Antichrist's false similarity to Jesus even extends to symbols inspired by prophetic visions. Jesus breaks the first seal and before things begin to warm up, before even their strange version of the Rapture, we have the individual Antichrist on a white horse. The beast, traditionally interpreted as Antichrist, is not even mentioned until the later chapters. But no, we have the beast with arms already riding on the white horse, and more given a crown from Heaven, and the mission to conquer the world so as to kick start the Tribulation!
Protestants tend to have no notion of a progress toward the Return of Jesus [neither do most Catholics]. It’s just straight to the end. For all they are concerned Antichrist could appear tomorrow. No progression. No hope for change or mercy. No clarity. Little do they consider that there is attenuation in chapter 10 describing a peaceful temporal interlude between the events of the minor or little Tribulation and major or great Tribulation.
In Roman Catholic eschatology there is a clear delineation between the little Tribulation preceding Antichrist and the Great Tribulation which includes the reign of Antichrist. Before Antichrist is born many things must come to pass. The end is not so near. There is a great war, a comet (Wormwood) predicted in the trumpets, Three Days of Darkness, the reign of the Great Catholic Monarch and Angelic Shepherd, conversion of Russia, a preaching of the Gospel to all nations, reunification of all the Christian Churches, a generation of profound peace, and perhaps hundreds of years of evil slowly creeping back into the world before Antichrist is even born.
The world can only take so much suffering at a time, and God has this all meticulously planned out. God is the Lord of hosts. He is not content with millions or billions with him in Heaven. Perhaps he desires trillions. This takes time. And God is gradually regenerating the world. God will not enact the creation of the New Heaven and New Earth until the Church really desires it and in some little way in participation with Jesus: earns it. And even then He will wait until he desires. The Holy Father is the epitome of patience, although one could imagine that his patience has just about run dry with our generation. Hence the breaking of the first seal.
Many would argue or perhaps sense that we are now at a decisive stage in our development as a human family or a Church. I have no arguments against this. It almost seems that God must miraculously break through to us. It is like we are tempting him too. But in the grand scheme of things there is a gradual progression. People can only endure so much change and suffering at a time, especially those with a responsibility of raising children of God. And I might add that people in the future will forget about our strange subtle nightmare we experience today.
The Horsemen of Parthia
Parthian Horseman
The Parthia interpretation of the white horse and rider comes from elite Biblical scholars of the 20th century. This sort of interpretation is the spawn from the mostly sterile literary historical-critical methods that cropped up in the 19th and 20th centuries. Their approach tends to be secular. They tend to interpret the Sacred Script using reason alone, without assuming Faith first and within that assumption and stimulus of the Holy Spirit: applying critical thinking and rational analysis/synthesis. They are missing the wing of Faith so as to soar in meditation of the Script. They interpret Revelation as broadly historical and their system of interpretation includes the fall of the Roman Empire. One will find these concepts in the footnotes of the New Jerusalem Bible and New American Bible. To showcase this interpretation I will quote from Revelation by M. Eugene last name Boring :)
The image of the archer on the white horse, who is “crowned” and goes forth to “conquer,” is intended to evoke in the hearer-reader’s’ minds a specific, dreaded threat. Just as “men wearing green berets flying in Cobra helicopters” evokes a specific image in the twentieth century, so the combination of white horse and mounted archer called up only one picture in the imagination of the first-century reader—the dreaded Parthians. They were the only mounted archers in the first century; white horses were their trademark. Parthia was on the eastern border of the empire, and was never subdued by the Romans. In the Roman mind they represented the edges of civilization, a different kind of enemy . . . Here, the picture of victorious Parthians functions as the announcement of the beginning of the end of Roman sovereignty, to be replaced by God’s rightful sovereignty.
The Parthians were a people from north eastern Iran. I do not think this is the correct interpretation, since it sets the first seal and horseman back over a thousand years. In addition one could easily start to associate the idea of the Parthians with modern day Iran and all of a sudden we have crazy speculation that there will be a nuclear strike on the U.S. to initiate the first seal. As if the arrogant, greedy and self-righteous United States government has anything to do with God's plan of the first seal, white horse and rider. They already think and act like they are superior kings of the Earth. If anything I expect the U.S. will get a quarter volley of Wormwood. Not to mention severe disorder from the second, third and fourth seals. But the first seal, white horse and rider concerns the initiation of God’s plan to resolve complex and profound problems with his children in the Middle East, Europe and Africa, that have persisted for centuries, long before the United States was founded.
The White Horse and Rider functions as the beginning of the end of all the problems in the Middle East and environs. The white horse and rider will serve as a Divine emissary to replace the current status quo among nations. In an even deeper conception the white horse and rider marks a decisive redirection toward the Return of Jesus and his everlasting reign. There is a threat, but the threat is is in relation to those who do severe evil, especially the transnational elite embedded deep in governments, corporations and banks.
The reason I added this subsection because if one digs deep enough in historical accounts, one will find the Parthians connected with Cyrus the Great. Personally, I admire Cyrus and in my opinion he is an Old Testament parallel and foreshadowing of that prophetic New Testament figure known as the Great Catholic Monarch. The Great Monarch is forecast to rise up during the first or so called 'little' Tribulation.
Back to Cyrus. A year after Cyrus the Great's defeat of his Median maternal grandfather, Astyages, Parthia became one of the first provinces to acknowledge Cyrus as their ruler, "and this allegiance secured Cyrus' eastern flanks and enabled him to conduct the first of his imperial campaigns – against Sardis." (Mallowan, Max (1985), "Cyrus the Great", in Gershevitch, Ilya, Cambridge History of Iran 2, Cambridge University Press, pp. 392–419.)
This historical association tantalizes me for several reasons. Sardis is mentioned in Chapter 3 of Revelation. If I am allowed to self-plagiarize I just wrote an intense article on figurative Sardis. The Churches of Revelation refer to successive multiple generations of Christians, entire ages, some spanning centuries. According to Ven. Bartholomew Holzhauser (and me) the Church of Sardis figuratively refers to the multiple generations of Christians beginning at about the time of the Renaissance to the reign of the Great Catholic Monarch and Angelic Shepherd, who have yet to come. We are in the generation of Sardis, who Jesus criticizes. And if I am allowed to play off the foreshadowing of my own understanding, the new Cyrus, that is the Great Monarch, will conduct a campaign against bad Christians, and all the nations of Europe which was formally Christian. One of his fronts will be the West. The other the East.
In the Cyrus-Parthian connection I also like the idea that this tribe tucked away in the East was the first to pledge their allegiance to Cyrus as a leader of nations. According the Saint Francis Paola, the first followers of the New Cyrus, the same who will establish his religious order (divided into three classes: military knights, solitary priests, and pious hospitallers) will come from an unnamed city:
The first members of this holy order shall be natives of the city of ... where iniquity, vice, and sin abound. However, they shall be converted from evil to good; from rebels against God they shall become most fervent and most faithful in His divine service. That city shall be cherished by God and by the Great Monarch, the elect and the beloved of the Most High Lord. For the sake of that place all holy souls who have done penance in it shall pray in the sight of God for that city and for its inhabitants. When the time shall come of the immense and most right justice of the Holy Spirit, His Divine Majesty wills that such city become converted to God, and that many of its citizens follow the great prince of the holy army. (Saint Francis Paola, from his letters to Simeon de Limena, Lord of Montalto).
I imagine this city will be tucked away at the edges of European civilization. Perhaps it is located somewhere in South Eastern Europe. Somewhere near or around the Black Sea. It is said by Saint Cataldus that he will conquer modern day Georgia (near Russia), Turkey, and Greece. This ring of nations represents the southern lip of the Black Sea. It would seem that he and his followers would start from a city in a strategic position from where they could move against both the Middle East and Europe. I also imagine that the city would have some sort of access to the Mediterranean. Perhaps a city located in Croatia???*** (see below). Or could he even possibly start out in Russia? Perhaps Mother Russia will play some role in providing him with followers, weapons, supplies, military training, support from the back, and so on. Mother Russia will have a prominent role to play in the little Tribulation. It makes a lot of sense to me that at some crucial phase in the future Russia would invest herself in liberating Europe and the Middle East. They can do so by alliance with this prophetic figure which we will I explain in subsequent sections.
In any case, if he took the Balkans and Turkey first (basically the southern lip of the Black Sea) including Bosphorus, this would be of great significance and would put him in an exceptional position. He could also harbor refugees there until, as we will see below, he takes all of the West and Middle East and just maybe North Africa and the Horn of Africa.
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| The White Horse and Rider as depicted in the Bamberg Apocalypse (1000-1020). One of the four living creatures is in the top right with a crown as if imparting it to the rider. The riders appears European. |
Amen, amen I say to you, he that believes in me, the works that I do, he also shall do; and greater than these shall he do because I am going to my Father. (John 14:12)
The Lamb
And I saw that the Lamb had opened one of the seven seals . . .
The Lamb is the risen Jesus. The only reason I added this subsection is to reiterate the idea that Jesus alone, out of all Heaven and Earth, is found worthy to open the seals, thus unleashing the white horse and rider with his Divine mission. If the first seal represents the beginning of the so called End Time events or broadly speaking the Tribulation, it is Jesus who initiates and officiates. Extremist Arabs who belong to an Islamic apocalyptic cult do not initiate the events of the Tribulation. The Second Divine Person does. Nations do not initiate the events by dropping nukes; the sinful Christian Church does not initiate the events; Jews do not, Muslims do not; Mother Nature does not; the Pope does not, leaders embedded in the deep state do not, a maniac murderer who thinks he is Mahdi and head of an Islamic State does not, a stock market crash does not, Antichrist does not . . . Jesus does. Again, Jesus freely chooses to break the seals. Jesus has patiently allowed his Church to wander and he will course correct and heal her through a masterfully conducted Tribulation which is also replete with miracles, graces, turning points, mercy, sufferings, and so on. This is Jesus' Tribulation. This is his work. No one else or nothing else initiates this little Tribulation. One would think that this would be obvious, and yet the people who write eschatology these days seem oblivious to this concept clearly signed into the Script.
Furthermore, when the prophetic narrative flows into the white horse, it is implied that Jesus is the One who imparts the crown to the rider of the white horse. The crown comes from Heaven. Similar with the rider of the red horse (the second seal) who could be an Angel. An authority is granted to him from Heaven. Similar with the rider of the black horse (third seal) who could be an Angel. This Angel is instructed either by one of the four living creatures, or Jesus from Heaven, since John heard a voice from the midst of the four living creatures. Similar with the fourth. These riders are given authority and instructions to complete a mission, from God and no one else. The four horseman are Divine strategies. There is intention, aim, purposes, goals, implied. These are not senseless and meaningless 'forces' progressing through the Earth. The the inhabitants of the Earth do not initiate them. Jesus is the One who is officiating over these events. This is Jesus' Tribulation. He decides when it begins. If the reader is so daft as to not pick up on these important and reasonable narrative points whether made explicit or implied then he is disqualified from interpretation.
Come!
In the Apocalypse, the verb, erchesthai usually refers to the coming of God or of Christ. The imperative here (Rev 6:1) could tally with the demands of the Spirit, of the bride, and of John (22:17,20), all of whom ask for the coming of Christ. In this case, he would be coming to the aid of his own by means of a conquering power that will punish the persecutors of his Church. (From the Jerome Biblical Commentary, p. 477, #38, notes on Revelation 6:1-2)
The addition of “and see” (καὶ ἴδε or καὶ βλέπε [kai ide or kai blepe]) to “come” (ἔρχου, ercou) in 6:1, 3-5, 7 is a gloss directed to John, i.e., “come and look at the seals and the horsemen!” But the command ἔρχου is better interpreted as directed to each of the horsemen. The shorter reading also has the support of the better witnesses. (NET Bible Notes)
This is a different way of understanding chapter six verse one of Revelation. Most of the modern translations of Revelation 6:1 omit the second imperative with the effect that the four living creatures each command a horseman to come, one after the other. Jesus breaks the Seal, and the living creatures are like his lieutenants calling forth, even praying for his orders to be fulfilled.
So for example in the Latin Vulgate we have
So for example in the Latin Vulgate we have
dicens, tamquam vocem tonitrui: Veni, et vide.
in English this is translated, "saying, in a voice like thunder: Come and see." With both 'Come' and 'see' understood as imperatives seemingly in relation to John. On the other hand most modern translations (I assume drawing from an old Greek script) omit "ed vide". For example:
I looked on when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a thunderous voice, “Come!" So I looked, and here came a white horse! (NET Bible)
This shorter translation opens up for a little different understanding. If this understanding has any merit perhaps we could assume that in a broader context the living creature is almost praying for the Coming of Jesus and the Kingdom of Heaven. The breaking of the First Seal officially inaugurates his plan to Come Again. This plan includes the coming of the four horsemen. So one could understand this as desirable, as Good News, worthy of a prayer; that Jesus would break the Seal, that the horsemen may come forth so that evil may be overcome, perfect justice may prevail and most of all that Jesus would finally come again as the culmination of all these mysterious events.
The Crown
and a crown was given to him . . . (Revelation 6:2)
I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have so that no one can take away your crown. The one who conquers [Great Monarch and other with him] I will make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he will never depart from it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God (the new Jerusalem that comes down out of heaven from my God), and my new name as well. (Address to the Church of Philadelphia, Revelation 3:12)
For thou hast prevented him with blessings of sweetness: thou hast set on his head a crown of precious stones. (Psalm 20:4)
One of their own people will be their leader. Their ruler will come from their own number. I will invite him to approach me, and he will do so. For no one would dare approach me on his own. I, the LORD, affirm it! (Jeremiah 30:21)
I say to Cyrus, “You are my shepherd, and you will accomplish all that I will.” (Isaiah 44:28)
Thus says the Lord to my anointed Cyrus, (Isaiah 45:1)
. . . and after having been crowned with three most admirable crowns . . . (Saint Francis Paola)
The Powerful Monarch, who will be sent by God, . . . will submit everything to his authority, (Ven. Bartholomew Holzhauser)
. . .then the Hand of Almighty God will work a marvelous change, something apparently impossible according to human understanding. There will rise a valiant monarch anointed by God. (Ven. Bartholomew Holzhauser)
. . . he [Great Monarch] will at length lay down his crown in Jerusalem. (Saint Cataldus)
Then Frodo came forward and took the crown from Faramir and bore it to Gandalf; and Aragorn knelt, and Gandalf set the White Crown upon his head and said: Now come the days of the King, and may they be blessed while the thrones of the Valar endure!” (J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King)
Traditionally, the crown relates authority, power, legitimacy, an anointing . . . or triumph, victory, glory, honor, might for the wearer in relation to others. The crown is a qualitative concept, one of inequality. He who wears the crown is similar and yet unequal to others. He is related to assume a role. He has been favored with abilities that others have not. He has earned where others have not. He can do things others cannot. Does it make sense that God would give this symbolic crown to Antichrist and his followers or to an extremist Arab leader of an apocalyptic cult and to his followers? Need I answer this foolish rhetorical question?
The crown is imparted to a simple man. This man is predicted by some Roman Catholic saints who lived hundreds, a couple over a thousand years ago. I quoted some of them above. He is usually named the Great Monarch or Last Emperor. He is supposed to be descended from royal Europeans. However given the prophetic context it is clear that no one on Earth imparts authority to him. Today there are no more kings in a classic role, or if there are their role has been grossly modified. He is not a pretender, and this has nothing to do with monarchism, ultra-conservatism or traditional Catholicism (or even politics). This has everything to do with a new plan of God. God will work something new: "Behold I am accomplishing something new. Presently they will spring forth . . . " (Isaiah 43:19)
This rider is not a king and has no authority before Jesus breaks the Seal and imparts the symbolic crown to him. A royal anointing is worked by God in relation to this man at the initiation of the little Tribulation via Jesus. He will be filled with the Spirit. The Spirit will stimulate him to assume some sort of mystical and extraordinary partaking of Jesus' Kingship, as a harbinger of His Return. He will become a saintly king, full of virtues. He is elect. Eventually he will bear the Seal of the Living God, which is likely a visible bloody cruciform or nominal wound miraculously imparted to the forehead of the bearer (a type of stigmata). As will some of his associates, and this gift will have an indescribable effect on the nations. Hand in hand with the Seal, he may have some prophetic gifts that will assist him in his mission in service to the Church and the world. He will lead a holy militia and establish the most perfect religious order this world has ever seen. He and his order will help clarify all the teachings of the Church. He will also amass great armies. Angels will help him with his mission, as will this other prophetic figure named the Angelic Shepherd, an elect Pope. For these reasons he is riding a white horse in the vision John conceived in God. Think of the white horse as the holy men and women that he leads in the spirit of this prophetic verse from Zechariah:
The crown is imparted to a simple man. This man is predicted by some Roman Catholic saints who lived hundreds, a couple over a thousand years ago. I quoted some of them above. He is usually named the Great Monarch or Last Emperor. He is supposed to be descended from royal Europeans. However given the prophetic context it is clear that no one on Earth imparts authority to him. Today there are no more kings in a classic role, or if there are their role has been grossly modified. He is not a pretender, and this has nothing to do with monarchism, ultra-conservatism or traditional Catholicism (or even politics). This has everything to do with a new plan of God. God will work something new: "Behold I am accomplishing something new. Presently they will spring forth . . . " (Isaiah 43:19)
This rider is not a king and has no authority before Jesus breaks the Seal and imparts the symbolic crown to him. A royal anointing is worked by God in relation to this man at the initiation of the little Tribulation via Jesus. He will be filled with the Spirit. The Spirit will stimulate him to assume some sort of mystical and extraordinary partaking of Jesus' Kingship, as a harbinger of His Return. He will become a saintly king, full of virtues. He is elect. Eventually he will bear the Seal of the Living God, which is likely a visible bloody cruciform or nominal wound miraculously imparted to the forehead of the bearer (a type of stigmata). As will some of his associates, and this gift will have an indescribable effect on the nations. Hand in hand with the Seal, he may have some prophetic gifts that will assist him in his mission in service to the Church and the world. He will lead a holy militia and establish the most perfect religious order this world has ever seen. He and his order will help clarify all the teachings of the Church. He will also amass great armies. Angels will help him with his mission, as will this other prophetic figure named the Angelic Shepherd, an elect Pope. For these reasons he is riding a white horse in the vision John conceived in God. Think of the white horse as the holy men and women that he leads in the spirit of this prophetic verse from Zechariah:
For the household gods [televisions, computers, iphones, etc.] have spoken wickedness, the soothsayers [media personalities] have seen a lie, and as for the dreamers [gurus, commentators], they have disclosed emptiness and give comfort in vain. Therefore the people set out like sheep and become scattered because they have no shepherd. I am enraged at the shepherds [some priests, a few bishops] and will punish the lead-goats [presidents, elite, etc.]. For the LORD who rules over all has brought blessing to his flock, the house of Judah, and will transform them into his majestic warhorse. From him will come the cornerstone [Jesus], the wall peg [Great Monarch], the battle bow, and every ruler. And they will be like warriors trampling the mud of the streets in battle. They will fight, for the LORD will be with them, and will defeat the enemy cavalry. (Zechariah 10:3, NET version)
He is on a mission from God. He will fight and earn his kingdom when the situation in the world is weakened and at its worst (note the second through fourth seals help set him up to conquer). And in the end he will reign similar to how a classical king reigns.
There is nothing evil in assuming a role as king as long as the person understands that he is meant to serve his people and lay down his life for them so that there is peace and no complaints. Leadership roles are not evil or unnatural. One can even conceive leaders and inequality in the animal kingdom. Kingship is often associated with evil because many kings of the past used their role to abuse the people. They were a sham. In response humans conceived complex systems of government, and today leaders lawfully steal, kill and lie to their subjects. Western governments are so complex with tens of thousands of laws so that today many can commit immoral acts, across nations, with impunity.
But some more traditional conceptions of kingship include a king bequeathing land to his subjects, i.e. handing over ownership of land he has acquired to those whom have agreed to have him serve as king. The king would not own the land. He would hand over ownership in exchange for men and supplies so as to protect the land and people against thieves, evil men, invaders, murderers, extremists, etc. The king would settle disputes and ensure that everyone is at peace, treated fairly by each other, taken care of, not misinformed, etc. A king is a father, a peacemaker, a servant of the poor. He has your back. Kingship is a covenant, a solemn agreement of free volition for all those involved, both ruler and subjects. There is reciprocity in spite of asymmetry. Kingship is a trust. A king is meant to resolve and overcome evil, swiftly. A king is meant to ensure that people are NOT raping one another, brainwashing one another, laying impossible burdens on one another, controlling each other like animals, enslaving one another, murdering one another, etc. He ensures that people are free to live, work and practice religion if they choose, in peace.
A King is nothing without those he relates to when he takes on his role. His people are his blood, the air he breathes, the ground he stands firm on, his spouse if you want. They are his all. This is similar to how God relates to us. He has given himself to us as if we were more precious than himself.
There is nothing evil in assuming a role as king as long as the person understands that he is meant to serve his people and lay down his life for them so that there is peace and no complaints. Leadership roles are not evil or unnatural. One can even conceive leaders and inequality in the animal kingdom. Kingship is often associated with evil because many kings of the past used their role to abuse the people. They were a sham. In response humans conceived complex systems of government, and today leaders lawfully steal, kill and lie to their subjects. Western governments are so complex with tens of thousands of laws so that today many can commit immoral acts, across nations, with impunity.
But some more traditional conceptions of kingship include a king bequeathing land to his subjects, i.e. handing over ownership of land he has acquired to those whom have agreed to have him serve as king. The king would not own the land. He would hand over ownership in exchange for men and supplies so as to protect the land and people against thieves, evil men, invaders, murderers, extremists, etc. The king would settle disputes and ensure that everyone is at peace, treated fairly by each other, taken care of, not misinformed, etc. A king is a father, a peacemaker, a servant of the poor. He has your back. Kingship is a covenant, a solemn agreement of free volition for all those involved, both ruler and subjects. There is reciprocity in spite of asymmetry. Kingship is a trust. A king is meant to resolve and overcome evil, swiftly. A king is meant to ensure that people are NOT raping one another, brainwashing one another, laying impossible burdens on one another, controlling each other like animals, enslaving one another, murdering one another, etc. He ensures that people are free to live, work and practice religion if they choose, in peace.
A King is nothing without those he relates to when he takes on his role. His people are his blood, the air he breathes, the ground he stands firm on, his spouse if you want. They are his all. This is similar to how God relates to us. He has given himself to us as if we were more precious than himself.
By the grace of God, this rider of the white horse will with time win the respect, admiration and TRUST of those good Jews, Christians and Muslims, all of whom will live in peace and reconciliation with one another after his conquest, and other events of the little Tribulation. Like Cyrus, good people will want to be led by the white rider. Many will join him, many will trust him. Only after years from when he receives his crowning from God via the Spirit and after he has fought his war, will men have him crowned as their king. And God will have this anointed king rise up and be successful, an event that would seem inconceivable by today's standards. And the Lord will work this so that Jew, Christian, Muslim and the whole world understand that peace, sincere brotherly love, clarity and resolution comes from Jesus and no other.
In summary, the crown in this prophetic context references a mystical gift, an extraordinary grace, a sort of unique baptism into a mission to overcome and be victorious. God has done similar acts in the past with the likes of David and Cyrus, but this is something greater. In the past there were even saintly Christian kings, but again this is something new and greater. He will have a true Divine authority to help change the Church and world for the better, even if temporarily. And this foreshadows what will be an eternal reign of the Father after Jesus returns and makes all things new.
The Bow
and the one who was sitting on it [the white horse] was holding a bow . . . (Revelation 6:2)
And Elisha said to him, “Bring a bow and arrows.” And when he had brought a bow and arrows to him, he said to the king of Israel, “Place your hand upon the bow.” And when he had placed his hand, Elisha placed his own hands over the hands of the king. And he said, “Open the window toward the east.” And when he had opened it, Elisha said, “Shoot an arrow.” And he shot it. And Elisha said: “It is the arrow of the salvation of the Lord, and the arrow of salvation against Syria. And you shall strike the Syrians at Aphek, until you consume them.” (2 Kings 13:15-17)
Who has risen up a just man from the east, and has called him to follow him? He will place the nations under his gaze, and he will rule over kings. He will cause them to be like dust before his sword, like chaff driven by the wind before his bow. He will pursue them. He will pass by in peace. No trace will appear after his feet. (Isaiah 41:2-3)
He [the Great Monarch] will assemble great armies . . . (Saint Cataldus)
By force of arms he [Great Monarch] shall take possession of a great kingdom. (Saint Francis Paola)
He will gather a grand army, and the angels shall fight for them; they shall kill all God's enemies. (Saint Francis Paola)
It is easy to understand that the bow figuratively refers to small arms with which most wars are fought. The rider of the white horse will raise a great army that will grow with his conquests. He will fight battles in and around the Mediterranean against evil men. He will seem highly skilled in the art of war: confounding his enemies.
The bow can also be used as a symbol for distance or vastness. A bow and arrow can target an object located far away. So the bow also prophetically figures that his power will extend across a vast region of the Earth. I don't know exactly how large his kingdom will end up. It will certainly include all of Europe and the Middle East, maybe even Iran and Iraq. I imagine that once the Iranians see that he is unconquerable, his Seal, the miracles associated with him . . they will flock to him. He won't necessarily even have to raise arms over certain nations, they will simply ally with him, proclaiming him King (or Mahdi see below). If not the Great Catholic Monarch will take them. Some think his kingdom will include North Africa and the Horn of Africa. Evil has taken grip in those countries such as Libya as we speak. Certainly some of the Roman Catholic prophecies in regards to him seem to imply that he will in some way have a role of authority over all nations (Saint Francis Paola says over the entire universe!!!), but it is difficult to know what the Saint's idea was of the world at the time he wrote. But his followers will spread throughout the world and produce many kings for some future generations. The entire world will at least be profoundly influenced by the rider even if his empire only officially extends from Near East to Western Europe.
Some note that no arrows are explicitly mentioned with the bow. In here is a riddle. The arrows could be implied for the sake of narrative efficiency, but perhaps there is something more to this. The lack of arrows could mean that he will start out poor, with lack of supplies, before he is anointed and his city converted. In any case, he will need much more than small arms to complete his mission. He will need and have the help of Angels and men to complete his mission. I would not be surprised if he is familiar with Angels and they give him instructions and perform miracles in his battles like they did for others like Judas Maccabeus or John the Baptist. Thus is the crucial importance God has placed on this man and his mission. I imagine he will also have an alliance with a superpower . . . maybe Russia? So perhaps lack of arrows implies that he is armed, but does not rely solely on arms to complete his destiny.
One last suggestion in regards to the lack of arrows. Perhaps lacks of arrows means that he may not have to draw on certain nations. As he and the other events of the little Tribulation progress, perhaps whole nations with their military will peacefully surrender and ally with him without him having to use force. There seems to be this hint that he has military power, but eventually there will come a time where he will no longer need to use it.
There will be peace and holiness throughout the Middle East, North Africa and Europe especially for all the innocent and ordinary folk through this Great Monarch. God will work a genuine peace. The Holy Father will have peace. Yes he will.
Conquest, Victory and the other Seals
. . . and he went forth conquering so that he might prevail. (Revelation 6:2)
But they will be subject to the LORD their God and to the Davidic ruler whom I will raise up as king over them. (Jeremiah 30:9)
In his days, justice shall rise like the sun, with an abundance of peace, until the moon is taken away. And he will rule from sea to sea, and from the river to the limits of the whole world. (Psalm 71:7)
The Great Monarch will have the special help of God and be unconquerable… (Holzhauser)
The powerful Monarch, who is sent from God, will uproot every Republic. He will submit everything to this authority and he will show great zeal for the true church of Christ. The empire of the Mohammedans will be broken up and the monarch will reign in the east as well as in the west. (Holzhauser)
. . . he will assemble great armies expel tyrants from his empire. He will conquer England and other island empires. Greece he will invade and be made king thereof. Clochis [modern day Georgia near Russia], Cyprus, the Turks and barbarians he will subdue . . . (Saint Cataldus)
This prince shall extend his dominion over the entire universe. (Saint Caesar of Arles)
The Great Monarch will come to restore peace . . . (Abbot Werdin d' Otrante)
From your lordship, (Simeon de Limena, Lord of Montalto), shall be born the great leader of the holy militia of the Holy Spirit, which shall overcome the world, and shall possess the earth so completely that no king or lord shall be able to exist, except he belongs to the sacred host of the Holy Spirit. (Letter of Saint Francis of Paola)
He shall annihilate all the heresies and tyrannies of the world. (Saint Francis of Paola)
Their sneers shall, however, be changed into mourning when they shall witness the wonderful victories achieved through it against tyrant, heretics, and infidels. Many wicked men and obstinate rebels against God shall perish . . . (Saint Francis of Paola)
He shall destroy the sect of Mohammad, extirpate all tyrants and heresies. (Saint Francis of Paola)
The son of man, the parvenu of the sea shall be most invincible in war . . . (Saint Bridget of Sweden)
Thus says the Lord to my anointed Cyrus, whose right hand I hold, so that I may subjugate the nations before his face, and I may turn the backs of kings, and I may open the doors before him, and so that the gates will not be shut. I will go before you. And I will humble the glorious ones of the earth. I will shatter the gates of brass, and I will break apart the bars of iron. And I will give you hidden treasures and the knowledge of secret things, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls your name. (Isaiah 45:1-3)
And those who were subject to him, he treated with esteem and regard, as if they were his own children, while his subjects themselves respected Cyrus as their "Father" ... What other man but 'Cyrus', after having overturned an empire, ever died with the title of "The Father" from the people whom he had brought under his power? For it is plain fact that this is a name for one that bestows, rather than for one that takes away! (Xenophon, "Cyropaedia": or, The Institution of Cyrus, and the Hellenics, or Grecian history. Literally translated from the Greek of Xenophon, pp. 281, 322)
He became the epitome of the great qualities expected of a ruler in antiquity, and he assumed heroic features as a conqueror who was tolerant and magnanimous as well as brave and daring. (Frye, Cyrus II Encyclopædia Britannica 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 28 July 2008")
In the Apocalypse, the verb, erchesthai usually refers to the coming of God or of Christ. The imperative here (Rev 6:1) could tally with the demands of the Spirit, of the bride, and of John (22:17,20), all of whom ask for the coming of Christ. In this case, he would be coming to the aid of his own by means of a conquering power that will punish the persecutors of his Church. (From the Jerome Biblical Commentary, p. 477, #38, notes on Revelation 6:1-2)
Conquer is synonymous with acquisition: to gain for oneself or come into possession by one’s own effort or action or through inheritance. Like Jesus, the GCM will work to gain for himself a kingdom, one in which Jesus desires, at least for a time. Jesus desires a place where his children can grow up, live in peace and thrive. Jesus desires a place where there are just laws and no forced suffering and burdens on the masses. Jesus desires a place of clarity, where his Sacraments, and his teachings shine without the shadow of evil. This place will be bequeathed from God to the rider of the white horse, and yet he will earn the love of those who live in his lands. He will work hard and earn.
The implication is that rider's entire purpose is to conquer, to dominate, to subjugate the peoples of the earth including lands for a purpose. The rider of the white horse will be a conqueror, almost like those in the days of Antiquity, only a saintly one. The best analogue I can conceive is Cyrus the Great. Like Cyrus he will conquer a vast empire extending from the Near East to England, including Europe, the Holy Land, Israel and many Muslim nations. The unexpected way he will do this will involve tremendous battles, miracles, cunning, and turn of events. However, it should be noted that this is a process. It will not happen overnight. It is said that he will be at war for four years, but he cannot go to battle without preparation: prayer, penance, a following, supplies, arms, alliances, a strategy, new ideas, etc. I assume that Jesus will break the Seal, anoint him. After this he will prepare before he goes out to his first battle. Meanwhile, Jesus will open other seals at least up to the fifth. The events of the second, third, and fourth seals will weaken the nations that the Great Monarch is set to conquer.
The civil murder and violence, disorder among nations, famine, and death by various causes (second, third and fourth horseman) will so weaken nations so that evil men and sects will rise up to seize control, and maybe even occupy regions of the Middle East, Europe, and North Africa much more so than today. Many will be martyred at their hands. The wolves will be set loose. False Christ's, false prophets; battles and rumors of battles; nation will rise against nation (Matthew 24). We have a foreshadowing of this in ISIS and al-Nusra who rose up at the the Syrian Civil War. But there are also many other evil groups spread across Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa whetting their blades to rise up or are already in power. And the elite can profit from all sorts of war and chaos. And don't think its above the elite to actually hire terror groups to create havoc. In addition, Israel will not be exonerated. Israelis target innocents, and commit many other severe sins, for example on the Palestinians and throughout the Middle East. They will be taken by the Great Monarch. There will be no more Israeli-an government, or any modern government by the end of the Great Monarch's war and other events of the little Tribulation.
I tend to think that the GCM will will humiliate them all, without prejudice. To both West, as well as East, it will be humiliating for their members of governments, corporations, banks, elite think-tanks and foundations, etc. to be taken out by this man anointed by God and descended from royal Europeans with a following like the stars of the sky. I also imagine that the Great Monarch will dissolve and dispel all U.S. bases from what will become his kingdom which presumably will include Saudi Arabia and all the Gulf States, Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan, the horn of Africa. These locations have become hubs for the U.S. military which has caused trouble throughout these regions. And of course NATO will be dissolved to the great honor of this Great Monarch. But his heart will especially be in the the Holy Land which he will help rebuild and in the end retire there.
His conquest will probably be more humiliating for those of West, than for those of the East. I tend to imagine that the Middle Eastern inhabitants will admire him more than the European ones because he will bring them the long desired peace and he will be a mystic wrapped in mystique.
The Three Other Horsemen
The Lord emerges like a hero,
like a warrior he inspires himself for battle;
he shouts, yes, he yells,
he shows his enemies his power.
“I have been inactive for a long time;
I kept quiet and held back.
Like a woman in labor I groan;
I pant and gasp.
I will make the trees on the mountains and hills wither up;
I will dry up all their vegetation.
I will turn streams into islands,
and dry up pools of water. (Isaiah 42:14-15)
The other three horsemen are simultaneous events and surreptitiously serve the goal of the white horse and rider's acquisition of Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. In addition, during the second, third and fourth horseman: word will eventually get out that a the great Comet (Wormwood) is on a collision course with the Earth. This will lead some to perform desperate acts. I imagine this will also induce false christ's and prophets to rise up. One could imagine comet cults rising up, mass suicides and so on. The fear of impending doom will lead many astray and not only that . . . to acts of violence. Eventually, governments will no longer have control over their subjects or assets.
There will be many shades of grey, and much confusion but in the end the Great Monarch will overcome all. He will be victorious. I imagine that his war will unfold in a complex manner. It will be difficult to follow his movements and there will I suppose be many lies spread about him via Western media. Some will be jealous of him, especially the U.S. government which by then will have been weakened and exposed for the evil organization they are. And of course the elite globalists will be in great fear of what he will accomplish.
I wish I could say that it is simply one group or one clear enemy that is to be conquered and that will end the war. But the world is much more complex and evil than many interpreters would lead you to believe. We are festering in in an old cancerous evil. But then, in the future, God will be in a hurry to make some radical changes across the board via this great king and other finishing touches of the little Tribulation. And in the end the white rider will bring peace and liberation for the innocent, the poor, the persecuted, the suffering, migrants, the folk and all those who have no helper. The Middle East, Europe, and many other lands will be free again from the clutches of elite tyrants who reign in the shadows. The slates will be wiped clean. Yes they will.
The opening of the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh seals will also weaken the United States, so that they have no ability to meddle in matters that do not concern them. Once the gas and oil gets cut off from the U.S. they will be in rapid decline and unable to ally or meddle in any affairs of the Middle East, and North Africa which up until then they have inordinately profited from and caused many deaths and break up of families. The fourth of the Earth, described in the fourth seal could be the lands of the Western Hemisphere (Revelation 6:8). In any case, baby U.S. are not the kings of the Earth and they have no right to resolve the matters of these ancient lands that God and his followers, whether Jew, Christian, Muslim, Zoroastrian, etc. worked so hard to build up and bless. The Great Monarch will dispel the presence of U.S. military and covert operatives from Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
The Great Catholic Monarch, rider of the white horse, and his holy militia horse will destroy all evil men, globalists, tyrants, sects, foundations, and so on, regardless of their professed religion or elite protection. He will conquer European, Middle Eastern and North African nations, regardless of whether or not they were once Christian, Muslim, Jewish or even acknowledge him at first. He will take down the elite. He will be a conqueror in the vein of Cyrus. He will treat the subjects of the lands he acquires with love, esteem and respect regardless of their religion. He will free them and the good will love him. They will swear by him.
There will be many shades of grey, and much confusion but in the end the Great Monarch will overcome all. He will be victorious. I imagine that his war will unfold in a complex manner. It will be difficult to follow his movements and there will I suppose be many lies spread about him via Western media. Some will be jealous of him, especially the U.S. government which by then will have been weakened and exposed for the evil organization they are. And of course the elite globalists will be in great fear of what he will accomplish.
I wish I could say that it is simply one group or one clear enemy that is to be conquered and that will end the war. But the world is much more complex and evil than many interpreters would lead you to believe. We are festering in in an old cancerous evil. But then, in the future, God will be in a hurry to make some radical changes across the board via this great king and other finishing touches of the little Tribulation. And in the end the white rider will bring peace and liberation for the innocent, the poor, the persecuted, the suffering, migrants, the folk and all those who have no helper. The Middle East, Europe, and many other lands will be free again from the clutches of elite tyrants who reign in the shadows. The slates will be wiped clean. Yes they will.
The opening of the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh seals will also weaken the United States, so that they have no ability to meddle in matters that do not concern them. Once the gas and oil gets cut off from the U.S. they will be in rapid decline and unable to ally or meddle in any affairs of the Middle East, and North Africa which up until then they have inordinately profited from and caused many deaths and break up of families. The fourth of the Earth, described in the fourth seal could be the lands of the Western Hemisphere (Revelation 6:8). In any case, baby U.S. are not the kings of the Earth and they have no right to resolve the matters of these ancient lands that God and his followers, whether Jew, Christian, Muslim, Zoroastrian, etc. worked so hard to build up and bless. The Great Monarch will dispel the presence of U.S. military and covert operatives from Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
The Great Catholic Monarch, rider of the white horse, and his holy militia horse will destroy all evil men, globalists, tyrants, sects, foundations, and so on, regardless of their professed religion or elite protection. He will conquer European, Middle Eastern and North African nations, regardless of whether or not they were once Christian, Muslim, Jewish or even acknowledge him at first. He will take down the elite. He will be a conqueror in the vein of Cyrus. He will treat the subjects of the lands he acquires with love, esteem and respect regardless of their religion. He will free them and the good will love him. They will swear by him.
Like Cyrus I imagine he will have his own charter of human rights. If in the GCM's kingdom, people want to practice the monotheistic religion of Zoroastrianism, it will be done. There will be no forcing one's religion on another against their will in the rider of the white horse's kingdom. Because he is such a man of quality, virtue, mystique and success many will convert to his religion which is Roman Catholic. And his religious order will win many converts in unison with other miracles of the little Tribulation.
In addition to the seals there will also be the first six trumpets of the seventh seal, one of which is the long awaited Comet Wormwood which will fall to the Earth in phases. And there will be other great holy men like the Angelic Shepherd whow is tied to the So even if all that I said above seems unimaginable with a great famine, and a comet hitting the Earth; radical changes would seem a little more imaginable.
But in the end, through darkness and despair the Great Catholic Monarch will be victorious, will reign and there will be a generation of profound peace, health and flourishing of Earth. All land disputes will be settled either by God via miracles or by the GCM and his men. Slates will be wiped clean in a general amnesty. People will be satisfied. They will live closer to the land and Mother Nature, in a more sustainable manner without crippling dependency on gas and oil. Youths will have father and mother and stop committing suicide. Children will play in the streets of Jerusalem. People will not be murdered or controlled and lied to like animals. Pagan practices will cease. Abortion and Euthanasia will cease. Our ridiculous food system will be torn from its roots. Smuggling and trafficking of illegal drugs as well as humans will cease for a time. There will be no more brothels in Amsterdam, with women on display in the streets. No more sexual slavery and kidnapping anywhere. No more contraception. There will be no more banks for a time and so no more loans on interest or burdensome debts. No more betrayals. No more corporate greed. No more elite think-tanks and foundations. No more NATO. No more U.N. No more INTERPOL. No more FED. No more meddling governmental agencies. No more grid. No more petrodollar. No more conspiring and selling of small arms. No more guns. No more nukes. No more drones. No more politicians. No more persecution of minority ethnic groups or religions. And so on. People who were once weak will be sincere and genuinely change. By God they will live in a moral manner at least for some time. And men will be men again. Women will be women.
There will be abundance for everyone. At the conclusion of the little Tribulation God will restore the Earth. Deserts will turn into Gardens. People will be happy and enlightened. They will help each other and work together toward common goals. They will build. A kingdom of Summer will grace the Earth. This holy kingdom of the Great Monarch will foreshadow the kingdom of our Holy Father which we pray for in the Our Father. From this kingdom, new cultures and kingdoms will arise. New ideas will be implemented, especially in the fields of ecology and agriculture. Sciences will flourish. The Gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the entire world, especially by the Great Monarch's followers in a pure and unadulterated manner. Members of the three major religions will share a rebuilt Jerusalem in peace and harmony. The prophetic Church of Philadelphia will take the place of Sardis. God will be served fervently. All for a short time, maybe a generation. Then holiness will slowly cool and the world will eventually become more evil than ever and finally Antichrist will be born in the midst of the last Church in Revelation prophetically called Laodicea.
Section IV: Supplements
Supplement I: The Great Catholic Monarch vs. Madhi
I read some Islamic prophecies and found some similarities between the Madhi of Islam and the Great Monarch of Roman Catholic prophecy. Both rise up before the Return of Jesus. Both are conquerors and establish peace. Both are religious, both are reformers, both judge others according to their own religion, etc.
Muhammad Al-Baquir, the fifth Shiite Imam, the one who explicitly said, “Two kinds of my community have no share in Islam. (They are): the extremists and the fatalists." Made this prophecy about Mahdi:
The Master of the Command was named as the Mahdi because he will dig out the Torah and other heavenly books from the cave in Antioch. He will judge among the people of the Torah according to the Torah; among the people of the Gospel according to the Gospel; among the people of the Psalms in accordance with the Psalms; among the people of the Qur'an in accordance with the Qur'an.
The famous Ja'far al-Sadiq, supposed successor of Al-Baquir said,
The Mahdi will conquer the world; at that time the world will be illuminated by the light of God, and everywhere in which those other than God are worshiped will become places where God is worshiped; and even if the polytheists do not wish it, the only faith on that day will be the religion of God
So I end by saying a word that will offend ultra-conservative Muslim, Christian and Jew alike. From a peaceful practicing Muslim's view I can't imagine that they would think that the Madhi would have soldiers like the one's found in apocalyptic sects such as ISIS (who it would seem are funded by Sauds and trained by the U.S.). Some of them and those of other sects think they are fighting for Madhi. They rape and murder innocents. They commit acts of genocide and terror. But if the Great Catholic Monarch comes and roots out evil sects like ISIS as well as governments, and resolves all the problems in the Middle East like no other, I would imagine that peaceful Muslims would admire him. And they will have a name for him. Perhaps that name will be Madhi.
Supplement II: The Great Catholic Monarch vs. Cyrus the Great
What I find most intriguing about Cyrus is that he seemed prophetically motivated to send the Jews back to Jerusalem and to rebuild the Jewish temple. What do I mean by prophetically motivated? It seems that after he victoriously entered Babylon and encountered the Jews, Cyrus read the prophecies of Isaiah, written about two hundred years prior to his birth. This reading ultimately inspired him to decree the rebuilding of the Temple and release of the Jews from captivity in Babylon. This is implied in the Second Book of Chronicles and the Book of Ezra. This is also stated explicitly by the famous historian Flavius Josephus in his Jewish Antiquities:
And these things God did afford them; for he stirred up the mind of Cyrus, and made him write this throughout all Asia: “Thus saith Cyrus the king: Since God Almighty hath appointed me to be king of the habitable earth, I believe that he is that God which the nation of the Israelites worship; for indeed he foretold my name by the prophets, and that I should build him a house at Jerusalem, in the country of Judea.”
This was known to Cyrus by his reading the book which Isaiah left behind him of his prophecies; for this prophet said that God had spoken thus to him in a secret vision: “My will is, that Cyrus, whom I have appointed to be king over many and great nations, send back my people to their own land, and build my temple.” This was foretold by Isaiah one hundred and forty years before the temple was demolished. Accordingly, when Cyrus read this, and admired the divine power, an earnest desire and ambition seized upon him to fulfill what was so written; so he called for the most eminent Jews that were in Babylon, and said to them, that he gave them leave to go back to their own country, and to rebuild their city Jerusalem, and the temple of God. . .”
According to Josephus the prophecies about Cyrus had been written 70 years of the Babylonian Captivity plus 140 years prior to the destruction of the Temple, thus about 210 years prior to Cyrus having had read them. Some examples of the Scripts written by Isaiah are:
I lift up the word of my servant, and I fulfill the counsel of my messengers. I say to Jerusalem, “You shall be inhabited,” and to the cities of Judah, “You shall be rebuilt,” and I will lift up its deserts.I say to the depths, “Be desolate,” and, “I will dry up your rivers.”I say to Cyrus, “You are my shepherd, and you will accomplish all that I will.” I say to Jerusalem, “You shall be built,” and to the Temple, “Your foundations shall be laid.” (Isaiah 44:26-28)
Thus says the Lord to my anointed Cyrus, whose right hand I hold, so that I may subjugate the nations before his face, and I may turn the backs of kings, and I may open the doors before him, and so that the gates will not be shut.I will go before you. And I will humble the glorious ones of the earth. I will shatter the gates of brass, and I will break apart the bars of iron.
And I will give you hidden treasures and the knowledge of secret things, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls your name.For the sake of Jacob, my servant, and Israel, my elect, I have even called you by your name. I have taken you up, and you have not known me.I am the Lord, and there is no one else. There is no god beside me. I girded you, and you have not known me. (Isaiah 43:1-5)
Who stirs up this one from the east? Who officially commissions him for service?He hands nations over to him, and enables him to subdue kings. He makes them like dust with his sword, like windblown straw with his bow.He pursues them and passes by unharmed; he advances with great speed. (Isaiah 43:2-3)
So one can imagine Cyrus, a gentile, overcomes over-lordship in what is today western Iran. He proceeds to conquer several empires and lands including the Median Empire, the Lydian Empire, and Asia Minor. Everyone loves him. Finally he conquers exotic Babylon, and takes the Neo-Babylonian empire. Instead of murdering his subjects he frees and empowers them. The Babylonians call him "The Liberator". When the dust settles he discovers that his rise to power, his conquests, his unique abilities and qualities were intended and predicted by the God of the Jews. It must have been startling and elating for him to discover his name called by the God of the Jews in their prophecies. And this discovery inspires him to release the Jews and order them to rebuild their Temple.
So why do I bring all this up? I imagine that something similar will happen with the Great Catholic Monarch of Prophecy. We have a collection of Roman Catholic prophecies concerning this Great Monarch which I will analyze here in the future. Yet perhaps one day of the not so distant future, he whoever he may be will discover these for himself, and this will help stir him up to fulfill his mission ordained by God. Saint Francis of Paola, a Franciscan from the 1400s says of the Great Monarch:
That man will begin to meditate on the secrets of God, about the long visitation which the Holy Spirit will make and the dominion that he will exercise over the world through the holy militia.
Perhaps God will use the prophecies of the saints and mystics to stir up the mind of this Great Monarch like he did with Cyrus in Antiquity. Cyrus and the events of Cyrus' life foreshadow that of the modern Great Monarch. Both are/were anointed by God. The Great Monarch will win over an empire that extends further than that of Cyrus, from Europe to the Holy Land and perhaps may even include modern Iran and North Africa. He will have similar qualities and abilities to those of Cyrus, but he is truly a new and original version enlightened by Christ Jesus. The Great Monarch will also be inspired to rebuild Jerusalem. Like Cyrus, he will fight many battles across a vast distance. Like Cyrus he allows refugees and captives to return to their homeland for example he might finally be the one who will enable the Syrians and Libyans to return home in peace and prosperity. Like Cyrus, the GCM brings peace and stability, but also is a gateway of progress toward not the First Coming of Jesus, but his glorious Return from Heaven.
Furthermore, he may even be found in Sacred Scripture under various names and figures. The Spirit may point these out to him. He may even be referred to indirectly under the name of Cyrus, and the above prophecies of Isaiah may also have been intended for him by the Holy Spirit in a sort of double meaning.
Supplement III: Ritual Sacrifice of the White Horses
I add this at the end because it is a bit strange. The English word paradise comes from the old Persian Paridaida through the Greek language. The Persians built and enjoyed these walled gardens in which they kept everything that was beautiful, like flowers, animals, plants, etc. They called them Paridaida. The Greek historian Arrian said that Cyrus did a ritual sacrifice of a white horse in his Paridaida of his city of Pasargadae. It was a yearlong sacrifice, done for victory and sovereignty of the king. And this has something in common with the Indian ritual Ashvameda. The Indians and Persians are cousins. The Zoroastrians also sacrificed white horses. So Cyrus may have taken part in this Indo-Iranian religion.
Also interesting to note that Iranians did not know about Cyrus until the 19th century. His rise was lost to them and sort of reintroduced from the West via scholars and finally the discovery of the Cyrus Cylinder. So there was this Cyrus revival over the past 150 years. Now he is a hero symbol, for those who are not content with the elite who rule in Tehran.
But the purpose of this supplement is that there is this ancient connection between white horses and Cyrus. Cyrus is the best ancient comparison I can conceive to the rider of the white horse who is in my humble opinion, synonymous with this Great Monarch of Roman Catholic Prophecy.
Reference for ideas in this supplement: A lecture given by Touraj Daryaee, Howard C. Baskerville Professor in the History of Iran and the Persianate World and the Associate Director of the Dr. Samuel M. Jordan Center for Persian Studies & Culture at the University of California: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uu7S_Aj0W8
*** Father Zlatko Sudac is from Croatia. It is thought by some that he is the Angelic Shepherd. The location of his birth and character fits the prophecies. Also he has a mystical stigmatic cruciform wound on his forehead. I think it bleeds every Friday. It is pronounced by world class doctors that this event cannot be scientifically explained. They literally quarantined him and did all these tests on the man. Some would think that this is the Seal of the Living God. He is the only one in history signed like this.
Hello! Your blog post was recently pointed out to me, wow, interesting research into the White Horse of the Apocalypse! I recently came to a similar conclusion not too long ago thanks to the vision of the approved stigmatist and mystic Marie-Julie Jahenny, which is probably why you were pointed out to me.
ReplyDeleteReading through your article and finding no mention of her, I don't know if you have discovered her prophecies or not, so I thought you may be interested to know that Christ has already named the Great Monarch through Marie-Julie Jahenny, and through her has given the most amount of details on how the King will arrive with his armies. (She was approved in 1875 by her local bishop, so she is not a fake mystic.)
If you or anyone else are interested in what she has revealed, you can find out more here, (bottom half of the article).
http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2015/07/marie-julie-jahenny-breton-stigmatist.html
Hope you don't mind me sharing this, she is such an important mystic for our times.
Thank you for the kind comments and info. I think I may have heard a little about her a long time ago. From France right? I did not know that she had Great Monarch prophecies! I will take a look. Peace.
DeleteThis is beyond exceptional. Who are you? Are you a writer?
ReplyDeleteGod bless you man. Thank you.
DeleteWell I don't know how to answer the above. My first name is Nicholas. I'm a sinner, struggled a lot when I was young. I'm in need of God's mercy and God has been good to me.
We all have different gifts and graces for the Church. I've always had a strong inclination to the intellectual life, especially when young, and I fell in love with Sacred Scripture. I seem to be able see and articulate some ideas and wanted to share this. More important is to live the Word of God. Writing and such is a small aspect in the life of Faith.
I don't write much anymore because work takes up to much of my energy and I'm getting older. I'm losing my powers and always knew I would. Most the articles I share on this blog are from some very golden years in my thirties, when I was very happy, praying a lot and studying. Good times!
Have strong confidence in God. He can work wonders.