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NASB | Revelation 6:2 I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Revelation 6:2 I looked, and behold, a white horse [of victory] whose rider carried a bow; and a crown [of victory] was given to him, and he rode forth conquering and to conquer. [Ps 45:4, 5; Zech 1:8; 6:1-8] |
Bible Question: the rider in this verse, is this the anti-christ. |
Bible Answer: 'I looked, and behold, (1) a white horse, and he who sat on it had (2) a bow; and (3) a crown was given to him, and (4) he went out conquering and to conquer. Revelation 6:2 '1. A white horse - the fact that the horse is white is symbolic. However, what is symbolically represented by the white horse is not certain. Equally, the rider on the white horse is not certain. Some argue that the rider is Jesus Christ--a position that does not contextually fit. That the Lamb is breaking the seals and at the same time represented as a rider is unlikely. Equally, there is no prophetic indication that Christ comes at the beginning of the eschatological events. The only similarity between the rider of Revelation 6 and Revelation 19 is the "white horse," which is hardly a basis to claim equality. The identity or actions indicated by the breaking of the first seal can only be discerned from prophetic parallels throughout Scripture. A conquering rider fits best with the lawless one prophetically depicted in II Thessalonians 2. '2. A bow - is used in Scripture in both a literal and figurative manner. It is hardly possible that a literal bow is intended here. It was not the favorite weapon of choice for Roman soldiers and in modern warfare, a bow would be useless. The bow is used figuratively in Scripture as a symbol of war. '3. A crown was given to him - a crown is a symbol of authority or right to rule. Was given indicates that this rider does not take authority, but that it is given to him. This is an example of the passive voice in which the subject is acted upon instead of doing the acting. In other words, the subject receives the action. The particular Greek word used here appears 22 times throughout the book of Revelation. The giver is not explicitly identified, but context indicates that either God or Satan is the ultimate cause behind each action indicated in these passages. '4. He went out conquering and to conquer - here we see the purpose of the rider. He conquers. What he conquers is not indicated.' ____________________ www.revelationcommentary.org/06_chapter.html |