The Ride of the Four Horsemen​—A Sign

‘And I saw, and, look! a white horse, a fiery-colored horse, a black horse, a pale horse; and the one seated upon it had the name Death. And Hades was closely following him.’​—REVELATION 6:2-8.

1. Before taking his seat at the breakfast table on October 2, 1914, what did the president of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society do at the Brooklyn headquarters?

IT WAS Friday, the second day of the month of October of the year 1914. Into the dining room of the headquarters staff of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society at 124 Columbia Heights, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.A., stepped the president of the Society. It was just about seven o’clock in the morning. Before going to his place at the head of the dining-room table, he paused. To get the undivided attention of the Bethel family members seated at the dining tables, he clapped his hands. Then, with a positive voice, he made reference to the opening words of verse 3 of the song entitled “Our King Is Marching On!” as found on pages 162, 163 of the songbook Hymns of Millennial Dawn, saying, “The Gentile Times have ended, for their kings have had their day.” First then he took his regular seat, to preside over the daily religious program of the Bethel family breakfast.

2. How far in advance had the president pointed forward to that marked year, and how deep into the world conflict was he permitted to live?

² As early as in the year 1876, in an article that he submitted for publishing in The Bible Examiner, the president had pointed forward to 1914 as the date for “the times of the Gentiles” to end, with serious consequences for the whole world of mankind. (Luke 21:24, Authorized Version) Amazingly, at the time that the president announced to the Brooklyn Bethel family that the Gentile Times had ended, the first world war of all human history was in its 66th day. Already by then 14 declarations of war had been made by participants in that terrible conflict against one another. Before the end of that vicious struggle for world domination and for the commercial markets of the world, 29 nations and empires had become entangled in that unimaginable conflict. The Society’s president, who spoke those appropriate words, died before his own country, the United States of North America, got involved in World War I on April 6, 1917, to become an ally of the British Empire against the Central Powers of Europe.

3. How had the president reemphasized the significance of 1914, and how could he feel when he said, “The Gentile Times have ended”?

³ The Society’s president had reemphasized the vital significance of 1914 in the columns of the Watchtower magazine from 1879 onward, and especially in the book The Time Is at Hand, published in 1889. But by October 2, 1914, he had observed enough of the current of world affairs in that memorable year to gain reassurance for his publicly stated position. He could feel vindicated, at least in this respect, as a close and careful student of the chronology, or time schedule, of the Bible, which prophesies about God’s times and seasons.

4. Before his death the Society’s president had seen the beginning of whose ride, and of what could this properly be called a “sign”?

⁴ Thus, before his unexpected death on Tuesday night, October 31, 1916, the Society’s president had seen the beginning of the ride of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse from the year in which the Gentile Times were due to end according to Bible chronology. The Apocalypse, or the Revelation, is the last book of the Christian Greek Scriptures, usually called the New Testament. The ride of the four horsemen is of worldwide significance, for it is part of a “sign” marking where the human family is on the stream of time. It indicates that we are in what the disciples of Jesus called “the conclusion of the system of things.” (Matthew 24:3) That it is a “sign” is stated for us in the opening verse of the Revelation, where we read: “A revelation by Jesus Christ, which God gave him, to show his slaves the things that must shortly take place. And he sent forth his angel and presented it in signs through him to his slave John.”​—Revelation 1:1.

5. How do the various Bible translations differ from one another as to how the symbolisms of the Revelation were presented, and, true to its introduction, with what is the Revelation filled?

⁵ The ride of the four horsemen is set forth in Revelation 6:1-8. Interestingly, whereas the New World Translation uses the expression “presented it in signs” and thus corresponds with Rotherham’s The Emphasised New Testament, the expression “signified it” is used by the King James Version, or Authorized Version of 1611, B. Wilson’s The Emphatic Diaglott and Young’s Literal Translation of the Holy Bible. True to those introductory words, the last book of the Bible, the Revelation, is just full of signs, symbolisms significant of things of far greater importance in human history. These were to take place in the future, “shortly.”

The Four Horses and Their Riders

6. For whom has it been reserved to enter into the happiness foretold in Revelation 1:3, and how so?

⁶ There are no historic developments to prove that those things came to reality during the 18 centuries after the death of the apostle John, about 98 C.E., and so, now, our attention focuses upon the current 20th century C.E. Doing so, we find that it has remained for us of this exciting century to enter into the happiness to which the inspired apostle pointed forward, when he wrote: “Happy is he who reads aloud and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and who observe the things written in it; for the appointed time is near.” (Revelation 1:3) For our happiness let us examine “the sign” of the four horses and their riders. Let us read Revelation 6:1-8:

7. What appeared when the Lamb of God opened the first seal of the scroll that was in his hand?

⁷ “And I saw when the Lamb [Jesus Christ] opened one of the seven seals [of the scroll that was in his hand], and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice as of thunder: ‘Come!’ And I saw, and, look! a white horse; and the one seated upon it had a bow; and a crown was given him, and he went forth conquering and to complete his conquest.

8. What did the apostle John observe at the opening of the second seal of the scroll?

⁸ “And when he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say: ‘Come!’ And another came forth, a fiery-colored horse; and to the one seated upon it there was granted to take peace away from the earth so that they should slaughter one another; and a great sword was given him.

9. What did John see and hear at the opening of the third seal?

⁹ “And when he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say: ‘Come!’ And I saw, and, look! a black horse; and the one seated upon it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice as if in the midst of the four living creatures say: ‘A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the olive oil and the wine.’

10. At the opening of the fourth seal, what did John observe and hear in the vision?

¹⁰ “And when he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say: ‘Come!’ And I saw, and, look! a pale horse; and the one seated upon it had the name Death. And Hades was closely following him. And authority was given them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with a long sword and with food shortage and with deadly plague and by the wild beasts of the earth.”

THE WHITE HORSE AND ITS RIDER

11-13. (a) What does the white horse picture, and what kind of person does its rider picture? (b) The rider there corresponds with what rider addressed by the psalmist, and to whom does Paul, at Hebrews 1:8, 9, apply those prophetic words?

¹¹ The white horse signified a royal mount, a bearer of royalty, a righteous and pure carrier, swift in movement like a literal horse. The rider of this speedy means of travel signified a newly installed king, for a royal crown was given him. He was a warrior king, for he was armed with a bow. Furthermore, he rode forth conquering, even down to the last opponent of his Kingdom to be put under him as conquered. It was to be a complete victory! In line with that, a long sword was given to him, a royal implement of warfare. Who, then, has been fulfilling this role in our own 20th century? Evidently the same one as the King who fulfills Psalm 45, where we read:

¹² “My heart has become astir with a goodly matter. I am saying: ‘My works are concerning a king.’ . . . Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty one, with your dignity and your splendor. And in your splendor go on to success; ride in the cause of truth and humility and righteousness, and your right hand will instruct you in fear-inspiring things. Your arrows are sharp​—under you peoples keep falling—​in the heart of the enemies of the king. God is your throne to time indefinite, even forever; the scepter of your kingship is a scepter of uprightness. You have loved righteousness and you hate wickedness. That is why God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of exultation more than your partners.”​—Ps 45 Verses 1-7.

¹³ In Hebrews 1:8, 9 the apostle Paul quotes Psalm 45:6, 7 and applies the words to the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Inescapably, then, the rider of the white horse who rides on victoriously must be Jesus Christ at his coronation in heaven at the close of the Gentile Times in 1914.

14. (a) When and how did Jesus ride into Jerusalem as if to his coronation, and in fulfillment of what prophecy? (b) What illustrious forefather did Jesus imitate in thus riding on such an occasion?

¹⁴ We recall the occasion when Jesus Christ rode as the king-elect as if to his coronation at the temple in Jerusalem. At that time he did not ride on a spirited white horse. He rode astride an ass. This was in fulfillment of the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9, which reads: “Be very joyful, O daughter of Zion. Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem. Look! Your king himself comes to you. He is righteous, yes, saved; humble, and riding upon an ass, even upon a full-grown animal the son of a she-ass.” Conforming to this prophecy, Jesus rode a peaceful animal when he made his climactic ride into Jerusalem on the 10th day of the Jewish month of Nisan, 33 C.E., thereby presenting himself like the Lamb of God on the very day that the Jews took the Passover lamb into their homes to keep it there until the Passover celebration on Nisan 14. In riding that way Jesus imitated his illustrious forefather, Solomon, the son of David. When David resigned from his kingship after 40 years of sitting upon the throne of the kingdom of Israel, he made Solomon ride on a she-mule to his coronation. Then, after High Priest Zadok had anointed him to succeed his father, the attending crowd of Israelites broke out into shouting, “Let King Solomon live!”​—1 Kings 1:33-40.

15. (a) What was the popular reaction to Jesus’ ride into Jerusalem on the ass? (b) What kind of welcome did Jerusalem give him, and why?

¹⁵ What, now, was to be the reception accorded to Jesus when, four days before the Passover, he rode on an ass down the Mount of Olives to the city of coronations? The crowds that started to accompany him caught up the spirit of the occasion from the setting of things and felt that he was the promised Messianic king of Israel. They waved palm branches. They spread out their outer garments to let him ride over them. “As for the crowds, those going ahead of him and those following kept crying out: ‘Save, we pray, the Son of David! Blessed is he that comes in Jehovah’s name! Save him, we pray, in the heights above!’” (Matthew 21:1-9) Such was the popular reaction. But as for Jerusalem itself, it was under the influence of the Jewish religious leaders who were not guided by the fulfillment of prophecy before their eyes. So Jerusalem gave him no royal welcome.

16. How did temple authorities treat Jesus in contrast with their treatment of the merchants?

¹⁶ When Jesus went to the temple, High Priest Caiaphas did not anoint him to be the Messianic king independent of the Roman Empire. The priests were allowing the merchants to use temple areas to carry on their gainful business, but Jesus displayed the proper qualities of a high priest by driving them away, and he rebuked those who objected by saying to them: “It is written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a cave of robbers.” Blind and lame Jews came to him in the temple, and he healed them. But the chief priests and the scribes found fault with what was going on, and they refused to accept him as the “Son of David” and to inaugurate him as the rightful ruler of the kingdom of Israel. When Jesus left them behind at the temple and went out to Bethany, he did not do so as a newly installed king.​—Matthew 21:1-17.

17. How did Pontius Pilate show interest in Jesus’ claim to kingship, and how did he override the desires of the chief priests with regard to Jesus’ kingship?

¹⁷ Four days later, when Jesus stood before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, this Gentile asked him whether he was a king. Jesus replied that his Kingdom was no part of this world to which Pilate belonged. At the instance of the chief priests that had said, “We have no king but Caesar,” Pilate handed Jesus over to be impaled at Calvary. Yet Pilate stood firm for putting above the head of Jesus on the impalement stake the sign: “Jesus the Nazarene the King of the Jews.”​—John 19:15, 19-22.

18. On what significant day did Jehovah raise his Son from the dead, and what were the parting words of the resurrected Jesus to his disciples before ascending to heaven?

¹⁸ It remained for the Almighty God, Jehovah, to raise his martyred Son as “the firstborn from the dead” on Nisan 16, the very day on which the Jews presented the firstfruits of the wheat harvest to Jehovah at the temple. (Revelation 1:5) Thus the future King was able to manifest himself to his faithful disciples that very day. Forty days later, before ascending back to heaven, he said to them: “All authority has been given me in heaven and on the earth. Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy spirit.”​—Matthew 28:18, 19; Leviticus 23:10-12; 1 Corinthians 15:20.

Completing His Conquest

19. What prophetic picture was Jesus thus enabled to fulfill in due time, and what kind of king has he been since?

¹⁹ Thus Jesus Christ was enabled to fulfill the prophetic picture of making his ride on the white horse, riding as a crowned king to complete conquest over all his enemies in heaven and on earth. (Revelation 6:1, 2) Since the end of “the appointed times of the nations” in the year 1914 C.E. he is a warrior King, armed as it were with a bow to pierce his foes from afar off. In reality, to this warrior King were addressed the prophetic words of Psalm 45:3-8:

20. What do the words addressed to him by the psalmist tell him to do?

²⁰ “Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty one, with your dignity and your splendor. And in your splendor go on to success; ride in the cause of truth and humility and righteousness, and your right hand will instruct you in fear-inspiring things. Your arrows are sharp​—under you peoples keep falling—​in the heart of the enemies of the king. God is your throne to time indefinite, even forever; the scepter of your kingship is a scepter of uprightness. You have loved righteousness and you hate wickedness. That is why God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of exultation more than your partners. All your garments are myrrh and aloeswood and cassia; out from the grand ivory palace stringed instruments themselves have made you rejoice.”

21. (a) How can we be sure that the words of the psalmist apply to the glorified Jesus Christ? (b) How is the accuracy of his aim at his enemies emphasized at Psalm 45:5?

²¹ At Hebrews 1:8, 9 the apostle Paul quotes from the words of Psalm 45:3-8 and applies the quotation to Jesus Christ, to call attention to his now highly exalted position. This makes it certain that the “king” to whom “the sons of Korah” were inspired to address themselves was the duly installed King Jesus Christ. (See the superscription to Psalm 45 sup.) The arrows from his “bow” will be aimed at the heart of the opposers of his Kingdom with greater accuracy than that of the ancient Parthians, who were expert bowmen though mounted on horses.

22. (a) In what other part of Revelation is this rider on the white horse depicted, and under what name? (b) How are our eyes blessed to see what vision, and how do we respond to this sight?

²² The rider of the white horse described at Revelation 6:2 proves to be the same as the rider of the white horse portrayed at Revelation 19:11-16. In this latter reference his name is called “The Word of God,” and on his thigh he wears the title “King of kings and Lord of lords.” Here he is pictured as at the grand climax of his charge against his opponents, when he brings his ride to final victory at “the war of the great day of God the Almighty” on the battlefield of Har–Magedon, or Mountain of Megiddo. (Revelation 16:14-16; 19:17-21) Unseen to human eyes, there then comes the binding of Satan the Devil and his demons for a thousand years of confinement in an abyss. (Revelation 20:1-3) Blessed are our eyes to see by faith the ride of the crowned King on the “white horse” since the end of the Gentile Times in 1914. Thrilled to our very souls at his conquests so far, we cry out, ‘Ride on, you royal rider on the white horse, to your matchless victory at Har–Magedon, for the vindication of the universal sovereignty of Jehovah God, the Giver of this prophetic “sign.”’

The Glorious Work That Follows the Ride of the Horsemen

1. How is it evident that the Gentile Times for trampling upon what the city of Jerusalem represented ended in 1914?

THE “King of kings and Lord of lords,” Jesus Christ, is present. (Revelation 19:11, 16) We have “the sign” for this. He has been present in his God-given Kingdom since the end of “the times of the Gentiles” in the year 1914, 69 years ago. (Luke 21:24, Authorized Version) Then the trampling down of the Kingdom of Jehovah God as once represented by the kingdom of Israel in Jerusalem in the royal line of King David ended. Over in the Middle East the city of Jerusalem has no king of the family line of David but is the capital city of the Republic of Israel, with a Jewish prime minister. But what about the “heavenly Jerusalem”? (Hebrews 12:22) It is up there in the superhuman, super-Gentile realm that “the Son of David,” Jesus Christ, reigns as “King of kings and Lord of lords” since the running out of the Gentile Times in 1914. The Gentile nations here on earth may oppose the Kingdom and its proclaimers, but they cannot touch it. They cannot dominate it, as once did the last five world powers of world history, namely Babylonia, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome and the Anglo-American world power of Britain and the United States.​—Revelation 21:1, 2.

2. In answer to the question as to what would be the sign of his presence and the conclusion of the system of things, what did Jesus say that finds correspondency in the vision of Revelation 6:1-8?

² The vision given to the apostle John, as set out at Revelation 6:1-8, prophetically shows what was to accompany the start of the ride of the “King of kings and Lord of lords” on the symbolic white horse toward the all-determining conflict at the battlefield of Har–Magedon. What that vision showed corresponds with what Jesus Christ himself told his disciples in answer to their question: “When will these things be, and what will be the sign of your presence [parousía, Greek] and of the conclusion of the system of things?” (Matthew 24:3) With regard to the “pangs of distress” that would mark “the sign” of his presence, or parousía, and of “the conclusion of the system of things,” Jesus said: “For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom [in war], there will be earthquakes in one place after another, there will be food shortages. These are a beginning of pangs of distress [marking the birth of a new system of things].” (Mark 13:8) “Then he went on to say to them: ‘Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there will be great earthquakes, and in one place after another pestilences and food shortages; and there will be fearful sights and from heaven great signs.’”​—Luke 21:10, 11; Matthew 24:7, 8.

THE FIERY-COLORED HORSE

3. How was the beginning of Christ’s presence to be marked, and so what does the vision at the opening of the second seal show?

³ So the start of Christ’s “presence,” or parousía, from the end of the Gentile Times in 1914 was not to be marked by peace either in heaven or on earth. The vision given to John at Revelation chapter 6 confirms this fact. What, then, would the opening of the second seal unveil to us? Along with the apostle John, we watch: “And when he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say: ‘Come!’ And another came forth, a fiery-colored horse; and to the one seated upon it there was granted to take peace away from the earth so that they should slaughter one another; and a great sword was given him.”​—Revelation 6:3, 4.

4. What did that tableau show, and why?

⁴ What did that tableau signify? What else but the outbreak of war, and that on an earth-wide scale, forasmuch as the rider on the fiery-colored horse was “to take peace away from the earth.”

5. Does this signify that the rider on the white horse was responsible for the outbreak of world war, and what does Revelation 12 show would follow the beginning of his reign?

⁵ Since the fiery-colored horse and its war-minded rider followed the rider on the white horse, does this mean that the first horseman started World War I after his coronation in 1914 and thus started using his “bow”? Not at all! Revelation chapter 12 pictures what would follow the birth of the Kingdom of the first horseman in 1914: an invisible, superhuman war. “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels battled with the dragon, and the dragon and its angels battled but it did not prevail, neither was a place found for them any longer in heaven. So down the great dragon was hurled, the original serpent, the one called Devil and Satan, who is misleading the entire inhabited earth; he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven say: ‘Now have come to pass the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ, because the accuser of our brothers has been hurled down, who accuses them day and night before our God! . . . On this account be glad, you heavens and you who reside in them! Woe for the earth and for the sea, because the Devil has come down to you, having great anger, knowing he has a short period of time.’”​—Re 12 Verses 7-12.

6. Consequently, what do the several features with regard to the second horseman symbolize?

⁶ That account places the blame for the first world war that claimed more than 8 million human lives from July 28, 1914, squarely upon the Devil and his demons. The rider on the second symbolic horse pictured the military hosts of the world, of which Satan the Devil is “the god”; and the fiery-colored horse matched the fiery fury and nature of that war and of its aftermath, World War II. The “great sword” of a cavalryman was given to this militaristic rider, to slash away with it at his victims. The greatness of this weapon of war would also indicate the greatness of the type of war that was now instituted earth wide, total warfare, warfare on a world scale. Nothing like it before! The history books are there in the libraries to give us the details about World Wars I and II! Indeed, war of world proportions erupted at the end of the Gentile Times in 1914.​—Luke 21:24.

7. To correspond with Revelation 6:1-8, what did begin to occur in 1914 to show correspondency with what Jesus told his disciples about the sign of his presence?

⁷ The one that gave to his apostle John the signs of Revelation chapter 6 was the same one that gave the information in answer to his apostles, including John, away back in 33 C.E. in answer to their question: “What will be the sign of your presence and of the conclusion of the system of things?” Since the order of events that he set out back there shortly before his death lines up with the order of events that he depicts at Revelation chapter 6, it indicates that what that 6th chapter envisions shows that the end of the Gentile Times in 1914 and the outbreak of war on a world scale marked the start of his “presence” in his heavenly Kingdom and the beginning of “the conclusion of the system of things.” As foretold by Jesus at Matthew 24:7, 8 and Luke 21:11, nation did rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom to mark the start of his invisible “presence” or his giving attention to the affairs of earth now that it had become the territory of his newly established Kingdom. But what about “food shortages” and “in one place after another pestilences”? These were also forevisioned by the ride of the four horsemen depicted at Revelation 6:1-8.

THE BLACK HORSE

8. What were the features of the vision that followed the opening of the third seal?

⁸ After the ride of the horseman on the fiery-colored horse, what does the vision present to us? “And when he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say: ‘Come!’ And I saw, and, look! a black horse; and the one seated upon it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice as if in the midst of the four living creatures say: ‘A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the olive oil and the wine.’”​—Revelation 6:5, 6.

9. What do the features of that vision plainly denote, and why was the color of the horse appropriately black?

⁹ Plainly, that denotes food shortages, scarcity of eatables. And did not these come along with World War I “in one place after another”? With the taking away of farmers from their farms and gardens in order to draft them into the fighting forces of millions of men, would not hunger prevail over wide areas, with little or nothing to satisfy it? Logically so! No wonder that millions of humans died of hunger. Prices of foodstuffs soared to beyond the financial reach of many countless famished ones, with such inflation! Think of it, a day’s wage, “a denarius,” for but a quart of wheat! A day’s wage for but three quarts of the inferior food barley, the staple diet of the financially poor! Those who were made rich through war occupations and munitions making could afford to get what oil and wine were on the market. And so for them “the olive oil and the wine” were not harmed. High wages could meet high prices! All of this draws a dark picture in connection with global war that drew so many men away from productive occupations, such as farming, into destructive activities. There is therefore no room for surprise that the horse that bore the rider with the symbol of measuring out food at exorbitant prices and of rationing out food was a black horse! A cheerless, gloomy sight, that conveyer of death-dealing food shortage!

THE PALE HORSE

10. How was a third witness provided in the vision of John to prove the beginning of the presence of the rider on the white horse?

¹⁰ The riders of the fiery-colored horse and the black horse were two witnesses to the fact that King Jesus Christ had been crowned and had begun his victorious ride clear through “the conclusion of the system of things” to its end at Har–Magedon. However, there is a third witness to this effect put on the witness stand for us. More than 60 years before the vision to John, the crowned rider on the white horse had said, “At the mouth of two or three witnesses every matter may be established.” (Matthew 18:16) What, then, about this third witness? No, he is no rider symbolizing something occurring within the earth, earthquakes; it is something that swept over the surface of the earth to the death of 20 million victims in 1918-1919 at the close of World War I. So, enter now witness No. 3: “And when he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say: ‘Come!’ And I saw, and, look! a pale horse; and the one seated upon it had the name Death. And Hades was closely following him. And authority was given them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with a long sword and with food shortage and with deadly plague and by the wild beasts of the earth.”​—Revelation 6:7, 8.

11. Why was the color of this fourth horse appropriately pale, and what kind of death does its rider symbolize in advance of providing victims for Hades?

¹¹ A pale horse would be a sickly looking animal, and Death would be a fitting name for its rider. Here the death meant would be a hastened death, not a death occurring to humans at an old age. It is a death that puts one in Hades, the grave, prematurely. How so? Because it is a death that is unwelcomely thrust upon one by the “long sword” of a tremendous war, by food shortage to the point of famine or by “pestilence,” a contagious disease that spreads over a wide inhabited area, spelling a rapid stoppage of life to its many victims. And did not “the flu,” the Spanish influenza, that struck the world at the close of World War I measure up to such a description? Indeed, yes! And Hades opened its hungry mouth to devour an estimated 20 million. It was not God-sent, but God permitted it. Not extravagantly it could be said concerning Death and Hades that “authority [authorization] was given them over the fourth part of the earth.” God did not interfere but let those foretold death-dealing factors work havoc on the war-ridden earth, even though these things claimed some of his faithful ones as victims. Death by “wild beasts” preying upon helpless humans is not reported on.

12. The devastating ride of those three latter horsemen, in occurring at the time that it did, proves what fact?

¹² The devastating ride of those three witnesses, namely, the rider on the fiery-colored horse, the rider on the black horse and the rider on the pale horse with Hades at his heels, cannot be overlooked or be erased from the history of modern times. Since they occurred as they did at the end of the Gentile Times in 1914, they must signify something of world importance. What? The Kingdom, for which his disciples were taught to pray to God in the Lord’s Prayer, was established in the heavens, now that the Gentile Times, “the appointed times of the nations,” for trampling upon God’s Kingdom by his Messiah (Christ) had ended. (Luke 21:10, 11, 24) So now the Kingdom is here. Its King has been anointed as God’s enthroned Ruler and has been crowned. His “presence” in the Kingdom has started. “The conclusion of the system of things” has begun. The royal rod of his strength Jehovah has sent out of the heavenly Zion, saying: “Go subduing in the midst of your enemies.” (Psalm 110:1, 2) Hence, the time had come for the Ruler to begin his ride on his white royal steed, dashing on to final and complete victory over his enemies on earth as well as in heaven.

An Honorable Privilege

13. How should the disciples of the rider on the white horse react to this information, and what foretold privilege of service should they consider it an honor to undertake?

¹³ In the face of those four horsemen as depicted at Revelation 6:1-8, what should the disciples of the rider on the white horse do here on earth during this “conclusion of the system of things”? They should serve unitedly as his mouthpieces in fulfilling an outstanding feature of “the sign” of his presence in the Kingdom, namely, “And this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations.” (Matthew 24:14) This earth-wide witness must be delivered by his ‘preachers’ and completed before the terminal “end” of this doomed “system of things” is reached. It now being 69 years since the crowned rider on the white horse began his ride to complete conquest over the opposers of his Kingdom, and since the world conditions meanwhile have worsened to the stage that they have, that terminal “end” must be close at hand. The “short period of time” that has been allowed for Satan the Devil here at the earth is about up, apparently. (Revelation 12:12) Who, then, will accept the honorable privilege of giving the final part of the earth-wide witness concerning the established Kingdom of God by his Christ? The united witnesses of Jehovah all around the globe answer, “We shall!” May Jehovah aid them in doing so, to the vindication of him as the Universal Sovereign!

14. Why must the rider on the white horse still keep riding?

¹⁴ The ride of the crowned rider on the white horse has not gone to the triumphant point of ‘completing his conquest,’ and he will not stop short of attaining this goal. So yet onward he must ride. Two world wars are already past history, but war preparations on a prodigious scale still shake the peace of mankind.

15. (a) Has the ride of the black horse and the pale horse come to an end? (b) Why is what has been happening since 1914 thrilling and glorious?

¹⁵ Millions of underfed people have to tighten their belts to offset the pangs of hunger, waiting in vain for food shortages to be overcome and inflated prices to plunge to moderate levels on which the poor can provide for their basic needs. Medical science finds itself baffled with new types of disease and the malignant diseases are fastening themselves on more and more victims, so that the rider Death has not brought his pale horse to a halt, so that the Hades of gravedom must follow at his heels. But what all of this, as happening since the close of the Gentile Times in 1914, has signified is thrilling, aye, glorious! At this late date what we are approaching is the end of “the conclusion of the system of things” that has come into existence since the Flood of Noah’s days, 2370 B.C.E., or 4,352 years ago. This is, for a fact, good news.

A Glorious Work Follows

16. Does this signify the end of our inhabited earth or not?

¹⁶ The end of this “conclusion of the system of things” does not signify the end of this earthly home of humankind. Not at all! It signifies the opening up of a new system of things, yes, for this same old earth that fallen mankind threatens to reduce to a desolate wasteland. Says the enthroned Creator: “Look! I am making all things new.”​—Revelation 21:5.

17. What privilege of work is it now an honor for us to carry out even into the new system of things?

¹⁷ What a glorious work lies ahead of those who survive the end of this “conclusion of the system of things” and who enter into that new system where the fiery-colored horse, the black horse and the pale horse followed by Hades will no more streak through the inhabited earth​—especially so with the resurrection of all redeemed mankind in the offing! Yet even now, before the ride of the four horsemen is over, glorious is the work of Jehovah’s Witnesses in proclaiming the best of news. It is the news of Jehovah’s royal government in the hands of Christ that will beautify the new system of things with a Paradise that will encircle the whole earth and fill it with peace-keeping redeemed mankind, blessed with everlasting life in human perfection that reflects the image and likeness of God. (Genesis 1:26-28) Ours is now the honorable God-given privilege to share in that glorious work!