Rev 6 (KJV)  And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. 2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer. 3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. 4 And 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. 5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 6 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. 7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. 8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth. 9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled. 12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?  

Contrary to popular belief the Day of the Lord does not begin with the opening of the seven sealed scroll, but the Day of the Lord and the Day of Christ begin after all seven seals have been opened.  The Day of the Lord is the time that God rains down his judgments on the earth.  It is a terrible time for the inhabitants of the earth.  The Day of the Lord does not begin until the middle of the tribulation period.  

The Day of Christ begins at the same time as the Day of the Lord, but it occurs in heaven, in contrast to the Day of the Lord, which takes place on the earth.  The Day of Christ begins with the rapture of the Church, and it also takes place in the middle of the tribulation period.  

The first half of the tribulation period is the 42-month period that God allows Antichrist free rein upon the earth without any restraining influence by the Holy Spirit.  It will be a terrible time of persecution of Christians.  This time period is called the "hour of temptation" (Rev. 3:10), and it is a period of trial for those Christians who are not taken in the Firstfruits Rapture of the Church.  

1. And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.

a. John is watching as the Lamb (i.e., Jesus) breaks the first seal on the seven-sealed scroll.  Thunder is a warning of coming judgment, so the opening of the seals is a prelude to God's judgment or vengeance that is to be wreaked upon the earth during the Day of the Lord.  The opening of the seals is not a depiction of the Day of the Lord, but it is a warning about the Day of the Lord.

b. One of the four living creatures (i.e., faithful Christians taken to heaven in the Firstfruits Rapture) tells John to "Come and see."  John is to observe what will take place on the earth during the opening of the seven seals.

2. And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

a. John sees a white horse that symbolizes a conqueror.  The person sitting on the white horse is the Antichrist and he will be given 42 months of authority upon the earth as explained in the following Scriptures:

Rev 13:5-8 (KJV) And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies;  and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Dan 7:25 (KJV) And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

b. The bow without the arrow is a picture of tremendous military superiority that does not have to be used to accomplish his takeover.  

c. The crown symbolizes his authority to reign and rule over the earth without interference by God for the entire 42 months.  

d. Antichrist is intent upon treading down the whole earth in his position as leader of the ten-horned beast.  The phrase "...and he went forth conquering, and to conquer" shows that his taking over the whole earth will not be completed before his time runs out and the Day of the Lord begins.  China and other oriental countries apparently never come under his complete authority.  

3. And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.

a. Jesus opens the second seal and the second of the four living creatures invites John to come and see what takes place on the earth.

4. And 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.

a. The second horseman is war, and this horseman is almost certainly the Great Russian Bear that will take peace from the earth.  Russia will invade Israel with its allies, and short range nuclear weapons will apparently be used.  Five-sixths of the army of Russia will be destroyed in the mountains of Israel.  This war is described in Ezekiel 38 and 39.

b. The "great sword" is a reference to the nuclear armaments of Russia.  One-fourth of the world population will die in this war and the subsequent famine and pestilence that will follow the war.

5. And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.

a.  Jesus opens the third seal, and the third living creature tells John to observe what takes place.

b. John looked and saw a black horse, and the rider had a pair of scales.  The black horseman symbolizes famine, and the scales picture the scarcity of food.

6. 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.

a. A voice from the middle of the four living creatures states the price of a quart of wheat or three quarts of barley.  The price is a denarius which was equivalent to a day's wages.  A quart of wheat is enough for one meal and 3 quarts of barley is enough for three meals.

b. The statement "see thou hurt not the oil and the wine" signifies that the wealthy people of the world will not suffer from the famine.  Oil and wine represent the diet of rich people, and these are not affected by the famine.  This shows the injustice that will prevail during the first half of the tribulation period when Antichrist will be in authority.

7. And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.

a. Jesus opens the fourth seal, and the fourth living creature tells John to come and observe what is about to take place on the earth.  

8. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

a. The rider on the colorless or ghostly looking horse is Death and Hell.  Death refers to the death of the body, and Hell refers to Hades or the abode of the soul after death.  Death is the aftermath of war, famine and pestilence.

b. The result of the above four horsemen of the apocalypse is the death of a fourth of the world population.  They will be killed from war, famine and pestilence.  It is commonly thought that these are the judgments of God, but verse 10 below confirms that these are not the judgments or vengeance of God.  They are the result of the reign of Antichrist upon the earth and the total depravity of man.  The judgments of God do not begin until after the seventh seal is broken.

c. The beasts of the earth will become extremely violent, and they will be responsible for many deaths also.

9. And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:

a. Jesus opens the fifth seal, and John sees the souls of those Christians that were slain for their testimony regarding the word of God.  These are the Christians who were in churches represented by Thyatira, Sardis and Laodicea.  They became faithful in "great tribulation" and they were martyred for their faithfulness.  These are the same Christians who are resurrected in Rev. 7:9-17.

10. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

a. This verse confirms that the war, famine and pestilence during the opening of the seals are not the judgments or vengeance of almighty God.  Satan, Antichrist and the depravity of man are responsible for the carnage during the first half of the tribulation period.  God has a hands-off policy during the first half of the tribulation period.

b. Antichrist and his followers will persecute the Church for 42 months during the first half of the tribulation period.  He will persecute the Jews during the last half of the tribulation period.  Chapter 1 of Habakkuk is a vision of the first half of the tribulation when God does not intervene.  The following Scripture describes God's initiation of judgment in the midst of the tribulation period:

Hab 3:2 (KJV)  O LORD, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O LORD, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy.  

11. And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

a. The souls (i.e., martyrs) under the altar were told to rest for just a little longer until all of those who would be martyred had been killed, and then God would release his judgments upon the earth.  The white robes are for their resurrection bodies that they will receive at the rapture of the Church.

b. Two classes of martyrs are identified in this verse.  The "fellowservants" would be Jews or Gentiles who were saved during the first half of the tribulation period, and the "brethren" would be Christian brothers who were saved before the tribulation period began.

12. And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

a. John watches as Jesus opens the sixth seal, and there is a great earthquake.  This earthquake will be a worldwide earthquake that will undoubtedly be felt throughout the world.  This earthquake will probably include volcanic eruptions throughout the earth that will spit out dust and volcanic ash that will cause the sun to become black and the moon to become as blood.  The blackening of the sun and the moon becoming red could also be from supernatural means, but volcanic eruptions have caused this same phenomenon in a lesser degree in the past.

b. This verse is confirmation of the following Scriptures, which establish without doubt that the Day of the Lord is after the opening of the seals:

Joel 2:31 (KJV) The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.  

Joel 3:14-15 (KJV)  Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. 15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.  

13. And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.

a. As there is a general violent shaking of the earth in verse 12 above, this shaking will extend to the atmosphere, the sky and the heavenly regions, as they are perceived from the earth.  This verse is employing a figure of speech called accommodation.  It is describing the stars in the heavens as they are seen from the viewpoint of the earth.  The stars are not actually moving more than normal, but the violent shaking of the entire earth causes the stars to appear as if they were falling to earth.  We use the same figure of speech when we say that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West.

b. Everything in verse 12 and 13 is literal, and there is no justification for taking these verses symbolically.  This violent shaking of the earth is also prophesied in the following Scripture:  

Isa 24:20 (KJV)  The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.  

14. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

a. This verse also has to be taken literally since there is no indication that it is symbolic.  This seems to be a very good description of an extremely large nuclear bomb being exploded.  The heaven does appear to disappear and roll in upon itself just as a scroll is rolled up.  This would also line up with the last sentence in this verse about the mountains and islands moving out of their places

15. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;

a. The practical effects of all of these portentious events is fear in unbelievers from all walks of life.

16. And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

a. The unbelievers realize the supernatural aspects of all the signs, and they attempt to hide themselves from the wrath of the Lamb.

b. These people are aware of the coming judgments from God Almighty.

c. This verse also establishes that the wrath of God has not yet commenced upon the earth.  Thus, the day of the Lord is still future after the seventh seal has been opened.

17. For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

a. This verse establishes that the Day of the Lord is yet future after the sixth seal has been opened.

b. The "day of his wrath" is the same as the Day of the Lord.

c. No human will be able to stand up against the judgments of God.