by Ryan Boyer<\/p>\n
In Revelation 6, Jesus (the Lamb) is opening the scroll’s seals one by one. The first four are the famous four horsemen of the apocalypse. These are not only punishments against people who have persecuted God’s people but also wake-up calls and opportunities to repent (like the Egyptian plagues). They are also purifying trials for God’s people who get caught up in the whole mess.<\/p>\n
When Jesus opens the fifth seal, we see martyrs crying out, “How long!<\/strong>” before God will finally avenge their blood. The sixth seal answers that question, which is something like, “Don’t worry. I will judge my enemies, and when I do, it will be cataclysmic.”<\/p>\n That cataclysmic judgment results in its victims crying out, “Who can stand!<\/em>” Revelation 7 is an answer to this question.<\/p>\n The first part of God’s answer to “Who can stand?<\/em>” is that God will mark his people before judgment so they will not be swept away by the wicked. God’s people being sealed on their foreheads in Revelation 7:3 refers to Ezekiel 9:1-5. Ezekiel 9:4 says, “Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan<\/strong>\u00a0over all the abominations that are committed in it.<\/em>“<\/p>\n I want to draw attention to the fact that those marked out to stand on the day of judgment are not the wicked sinners who make the city such a morally terrible place. They are those who look at the sin in the world around them and are sick about it (i.e., sigh and groan). These are the people whose souls are sealed for God.<\/p>\n There is an example of the opposite later in Revelation. When Babylon falls in Revelation 18, the kings of the earth weep and wail over her destruction because they committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her (Revelation 18:9). The merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her since no one buys their cargo anymore (Revelation 18:11), and because they gained wealth from her (Revelation 18:15). “All shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea<\/em>” cried out because the party is over (Revelation 18:17).<\/p>\n All these did not necessarily do <\/b>the sin of Babylon. Still, they participated in it, and rather than sighing and groaning over her depravity, they sighed and groaned when she fell, and they couldn’t benefit from her any longer.<\/p>\n This is my main takeaway: Those who are sealed or marked as God’s people are disgusted and appalled by Babylon’s sin. The solution is Revelation 18:4: “Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues<\/em>.” If we participate in Babylon’s sin, we also participate in her punishment.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Ryan Boyer In Revelation 6, Jesus (the Lamb) is opening the scroll’s seals one by one. The first four are the famous four horsemen of the apocalypse. These are not only punishments against people who have persecuted God’s people but also wake-up calls and opportunities to repent (like the Egyptian plagues). They are also…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[1126,102],"class_list":["post-83900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-courage","tag-revelation"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9565,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/who-are-the-144000\/","url_meta":{"origin":83900,"position":0},"title":"Who are the 144,000?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 25, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In Revelation it talks about 144,000 in a couple of places, I was talking to my friend about it. It's been six months since I have read Revelation straight through and I have never done a real \"study\" on it. But what are the requirements for the 144,000 people?\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":40846,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-you-shed-light-on-the-upcoming-four-blood-moons-prophecy\/","url_meta":{"origin":83900,"position":1},"title":"Can you shed light on the upcoming four blood moons prophecy?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 4, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, Thanks for taking time out of your day to read my question. I've just recently turned my life over to Christ, and I am intentionally trying to read and study His word in the Bible, and I was hoping you might be able to shed some light on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16078,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-the-harlot-in-revelation-17-18-the-roman-catholic-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":83900,"position":2},"title":"Is the harlot in Revelation 17-18 the Roman Catholic Church?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 17, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I'm reading the prophetic book of Revelation and comparing it with Daniel for I heard they are talking about the same subject. In chapters 17 to 18, it seems to be specific in symbolism for it points out that the woman, who is a whore, is a kingdom that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":52814,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/when-were-the-four-angels-placed-at-the-euphrates-river\/","url_meta":{"origin":83900,"position":3},"title":"When were the four angels placed at the Euphrates River?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 29, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: When were the four angels placed at the Euphrates River? Answer: \"One saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, 'Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.' And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":95669,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/revelation\/","url_meta":{"origin":83900,"position":4},"title":"Revelation","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 17, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton When something has been unknown and mysterious in the past, and then God reveals a thing that was once unknown, you call that a \"revelation\". 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