Kingdom Come

1. “many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ / Promised Prince of Peace; and shall deceive many…

   • behold a white horse [peace]: and he that sat on him had a bow [like Cupid]; and a crown was given [voluntarily by the people] unto him: and he went forth conquering [this very nation!], and to conquer [other nations].”

2. “nation [ethnic group] shall rise against nation, and kingdom [geopolitical organization] against kingdom…wars and rumours of wars”…

   • there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.”

3. “there shall be famines, pestilences / epidemics“…lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand…And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.” For the average person “a man’s daily wages would be but just enough to buy himself bread, without any thing to eat with it; and when he would have nothing left for clothes, and other things, nor anything for his wife and children:” while the rich get richer during crises, especially the corrupt military-industrial complex. Along with famine comes dreadful living conditions, not just for combatants but civilians in homelands diverting resources for war and in lands devastated by war, earthquakes and other natural disasters experiencing a break down of law and order, and homeless refugees in camps fleeing battlefields and genocide.

4. ” except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved:”

   • …a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him…over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts [unknown creatures, invisible microbes] of the earth.

As Yeshua spoke these words, the prophet Zechariah’s vivid description of a team of four horses furiously racing to alter the course of history would have been in Yeshua’s and his listener’s minds’ eyes, and should be in ours.

“And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of brass.

1. In the first chariot were red horses [war]…
2. and in the second chariot black horses… [famine] which are therein go forth into the north country;
3. And in the third chariot white horses…and the white go forth after them [a false savior from war and famine]
4. and in the fourth chariot grisled and bay horses….the grisled go forth toward the south country…And the bay went forth, and sought to go that they might walk to and fro through the earth: and he said, Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth – [death spreads throughout the world] 

“These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the LORD of all the earth.” (Zechariah 6)

The chastening actions of the four horsement were described by Moses,

“if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day…because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me [by choosing an apostate leader over YHVH]

• The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke [war]
• The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust [famine]
• The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee [beasts of the earth, infectious diseases from malnutrition, crowded camp conditions, self-destructive behaviors 
• The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies [death]” (Deuteronomy 28)

A ride through history gives a broad overview of this pattern, enabling us to recognize future recurrences even before the next step in the sequence unfolds. Forewarned is forearmed

962 BC – 911 BC (I Kings 3:1, 4:21,  11:9-40, 14:25-30, 15:16)

• White Horse – Solomon makes leagues with Egypt and a multitude of surrounding nations, inevitably including marriage as part of the contract. And when one theocracy makes a league with another theocracy, the gods are never left out. “But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites: Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods…Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites…Chemosh, the abomination of Moab…and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.”
• Red Horse – Egypt wars against Israel . Note that each deliverer becomes the next oppressor.
  • And the LORD sent…bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it.” (II Kings 24:2)
• Black Horse – Famine implied as part of war
• Pale Horse –  massive death rates from all causes.

911 BC – 736 BC (I Kings 15:16-21, II Kings 12:17, 15:37)

• White Horse – Judah makes league with Syria / Aram to defend against Israel. The Kingdom of Aram-Damascus reached its height in the second half of the 9th century BCE, during the reign of king Hazael.”
• Syria wars against Judah
• Black & Pale Horses understood as part of war

736 BC – 692 BC (II Kings 16, 18:13, 19:29-35)

• White Horse – Judah makes league with Assyria to defend against Syria and Israel
  • So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me…And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria…And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus…And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent…And when the king was come from Damascus…the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon [as his god’s representative, vicar, manifestation, priest-king].
• Red Horse – Assyria attacks Judah
• Black Horse – famine during seige
• Pale Horse – death from plague

Are you catching the pattern? The nation with whom God’s chosen people betray their God by making a defense and economic league always betrays the league! Can we see God’s signature here?

“The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands.” (Psalm 9:16)

The wicked are those who trust in humans rather than Almighty God.

“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.” (Proverbs 29:25)

“From the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely…saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.” (Jeremiah 6:13-14)

The righteous are those who put their trust in Creator YHVH even through – especially through! – mortal death, believing his promise for everlasting life through connection / identification with him.

These horse-drawn episodes continued to repeat, escalating each time, when they do not achieve their objective of driving the remnant – a critical mass number – back to their Rock.

692 BC – 586 BC

• White Horse – Judah makes league with Babylon to defend against Assyria instead of trusting YHVH (Isaiah 39:1-2)
• Red Horse – Babylon attacks Judah (II Kings 24:1-2, 25:1-2)
• Black Horse – Famine (II Kings 25:3)
• Pale Horse – Death (Ezekiel 5:12)

~ 520 BC 

“Thus saith the LORD unto this people…the LORD…will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins…I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence.” (Jeremiah 14:1-12)

When Jeremiah’s limited time of judgment on Israel through the Babylonian Exile failed to bring about the desired repentance and restoration, God

1. escalates the level of judgment by the horsemen by
2. increasing the time period of judgment from 70 years by the standard factor of 7
3. and increasing the four stages of judgment by one empire to four empires which each bring down all four stages of judgment = 16 judgments.

“in the second year of Darius [who ended the Babylonian Empire] came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah…saying…Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy...the LORD shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 1)

We absolutely cannot take this to mean that the LORD is going to overlook his people’s rejection of him!

IT MEANS HE IS GOING TO CONTINUE TO ARGUE WITH THEM TO PRESERVE THEIR MARRIAGE!

I get this. Anyone who spent years of great unpleasantness pleading with their spouse to create an actual marriage – until the day they accept their spouse’s utter lack of interest in doing so, and gets a divorce – gets this.

“Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me…and I will turn unto you…Be ye not as your fathers…they did not hear, nor hearken unto me…where are they?

“And I turned, and…behold, there came four chariots [in sequence]…

1. 1. [Hitched] In the first chariot were red horses [understood to be Babylon because the first, and also because no longer mentioned so had been carried off the world stage. 
   2. and in the second chariot black horses [Medo-Persian, current with Zechariah] which go forth into the north country / Greece.
   3. And in the third chariot white horses [Greece] go forth after them/ also into the north country fighting the Romans;
   4. and in the fourth chariot [also future] grisled / color faded / pale / gray haired AND bay / any color of coat, identified as bay by having black points in the mane, tail, ears and lower legs (suggesting the fourth is oldest and composed of many “breeds”. Roman), go forth toward the south country [historically began building its empire with Egypt].

Each empire continues the sequence of events starting with apostacy under a false savior – the military ruler of the foreign empire – who then betrays Israel bringing – instead of peace – war with invariably, famine, pestilence and death.

White Horse Empire: The Greek Savior Alexander the Great, at the age of 20  led a much smaller army to victories against the mighty Persian army across Asia Minor, Syria and Egypt without suffering a single defeat to conquer the perpetual enemy of Greece. At the age of 25, in 331 BC, he became ‘great king’ of Persia after emerging victorious from the Battle of Gaugamela, in what is now northern Iraq. 

Alexander inspired loyalty in his new subjects by identifying himself with their gods.

Approaching Jerusalem, “when he saw the Multitude at a Distance, in white Garments; while the Priests stood clothed with fine Linnen; and the High Priest in Purple and scarlet Clothing, with his Miter on his Head, having the golden Plate, whereon the name of GOD was engraved; he approached by himself, and adored that Name, and first saluted the High Priest. The Jews also did altogether, with one Voice, salute Alexander, and encompass him about…And when he had…given the High Priest his right Hand; [ancient sign of friendship – no weapon in hand – in this context offering a political alliance.]…he came into the City. And when he went up into the Temple, he offered Sacrifice to God, according to the High Priest’s Direction; and magnificently treated both the High Priest and the Priests.”

What just transpired at Jerusalem is what would transpire shortly after in Egypt. These are theocracies, remember. When the High Priest allowed Alexander to offer sacrifice, he was being accepted as the son of the God of the nation, the manifestation of God himself, just by different names in different languages.

Alexander the Great’s legacy was the War of the Successors which split Alexander’s empire into first four parts, then through war coalescing into just three – Macedonia, the Seleucid Empire in Asia Minor, Syria and Mesopotamia, and the Ptolemaic Kingdom in Egypt. For centuries these three fought each other for the hegemony of the Levant and the Eastern Mediterranean, until defeated by the Romans.

Anti-ochus IV came to power c. 170 B.C.E. over the Seleucid Kingdom of Syria. The essential element of his name continues in English, understood as “against” or “conflicting”. By taking the epitaph Epiphanes (“God Manifest”), Antiochus even claimed to be Zeus incarnate, clearly “Anti-” the monotheistic YHVH. He was resisted by devout Jews who called their resistance force Maccabee / Hammer – Unfortunately, instead of rebuilding YHVH’s covenant, they maintained and consolidated their power by founding the Hasmonean royal dynasty, although the Hasmonean’s were not descended from Moses’ brother, Aaron the first High Priest nor from David but instead eleced in Hellenistic fashion.

Despite becoming Hellenized, they were betrayed – always happens! – and viciously persecuted by the Seleucid Greeks, so the Hasmoneans sought the protection of the rising power of the Romans against the Greeks, which was accorded by the Roman Senate c. 139 B.C.E.

Julius Caesar rose to power as a genius military commander and politician. After conquering the biggest threat to Rome at the time – the barbarian Gauls which gained him broad support and popularity among the common people as well as the undying loyalty of his soldiers. This supplied him with the necessary muscle to seize power, Julius Caesar waged two civil wars against the Roman Republic and endless world war.

The Jewish Sanhedrin proclaimed Caesar their king at the trial of Yeshua of Nazareth, son of David, following which Judea was ravaged by rivalry amongst its leaders. War breaks out. There is desperate famine in besieged Jerusalem. In 70 AD 600,000 – 1,200,000 Jews died in siege of Jerusalem, 20,000 Jews were killed in a pogrom in Caesarea and 10,000 Jews killed in Damascus in one day,