Unsealed: A Closer Look At Revelation 6 And ‘The Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse’

By ICA

Revelation 6:1, “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…”

Were John’s apocalyptic snapshots and descriptions of the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” in the Book of Revelation pointing to events that would only take place nearly 2000 years after the visions were first revealed? All too often, many of today’s Christian teachers and Bible prophecy experts have repeated the belief that the entirety of the Book of Revelation, with the exception of the first three chapters, are to be understood in futuristic terms only. I have done this myself in the past. Whether it be the Seven Seals or the Seven Trumpets or the Seven Bowls of wrath, everything contained therein and described by John from Revelation 4:1 onward must be treated as little more than a description of apocalyptic earth-shattering events that we, as Christians, will never witness taking place upon the world in which we live, events that can only begin to come to fruition after an imminent rapture has suddenly removed all followers of Christ from the face of the earth to deliver them from the impending wrath of God and the last-days Beast of Revelation. If we take the time to engage in a careful examination of the text, however, we may begin to see that some of the events often understood as yet to come, are events that are already taking place today.

An Overview Of History: The Islamic Beast Of Revelation – The Past And The Present

After careful study, I have come to the conclusion that, judging from the description of events and their sequence provided for us in Scripture, the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” described in the first four Seals of Revelation 6 are four separate

Christian Bishop in Egypt: Christians Are Currently Experiencing Their Worst Time in Recent Centuries, Many Now Unable to Buy or Sell

Revelation 13:16-17, “And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”

ACN News – “Christians in Egypt are currently experiencing their worst time in recent centuries. This statement was made by the Coptic Orthodox Bishop Stephanos of Beba and Elfashn to the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). Christians are being violently killed under the eyes of the international media. Also, for the first time in many years, churches are being systematically burned and destroyed. The police are taking no action and nobody is punished for it. In the Egyptian media, ‘the facts are systematically covered up in order to keep the international media from reporting the truth and bringing pressure from outside,’ he complained. However, video films showing the massacre of demonstrators on 9 October were broadcast by the three television stations operated by the Coptic Church and have thus also found their way into the international media. This time the attacks on Copts ‘have been better documented’.

Problems are also experienced in day-to-day life because calls are often made in the media not to buy from Christian merchants or to sell anything to Christians. Businessmen are therefore faced with a struggle for economic survival. Christians are indirectly excluded from employment, for example by job advertisements specifying ‘a female employee with headscarf’. Attempts are being made ‘to drive the Christians out’.” Read more.

‘Bloody’: Christian Persecution is ‘Coursing Through Muslim-Majority Nations from One End of the Globe to the Other’ – “We hear so often about Muslims as victims of abuse in the West and combatants in the Arab Spring’s fight against tyranny. But, in fact, a wholly different kind of war is underway—an unrecognized battle costing thousands of lives. Christians are being killed in the Islamic world because of their religion. It is a rising genocide that ought to provoke global alarm…” Read more.

Iraqi Christian Ashur Yacob Issa Beheaded by Islamists

Mali: Christian Leader Beheaded as Islamists Terrorize Country, Create List of All Christians They Intend to Execute by Beheading – “A Christian leader has been beheaded and others are being threatened with similar treatment as Islamic militants run amok in Mali, West Africa. Christians have fled the town of Timbuktu in the north of the country where harsh Sharia Law has already been imposed amid reports that churches in Gao, 200 miles to the east, have been completely destroyed… ‘We have escaped in the wake of horrible death threats as the Islamists have a list of all the Christians in Timbuktu whom they intend to execute by beheading.’” Read more.

Islamic Militants Behead Afghan Christian

Egypt: Rising Islamic Leader Declares ‘We Will Launch a Campaign of Islamic Conquest Throughout the World’, ‘Exterminate’ Christians Who Get In the Way of Sharia - “A rising leader in the radical Islamic movement in Egypt that has become a major political player since the demise of Hosni Mubarak’s regime says Christian churches may need to be blown up and Christians exterminated to allow the advance of Islamic law, or Shariah. The comments come from Sheik ‘Adel Shehato, a senior leader with the Egyptian Islamic Jihad terrorist group… The sheik, a senior jihadist leader, responded to a question about using violence against Christians, who make up a substantial minority in Egypt.” Read more.

Christian Beheaded by Islamists In Somalia

Islamic Militants Calling Themselves ‘The Unknown Soldiers of The Hidden Imam’ Threaten to Hunt Down and Execute Christians Who Flee Iran – “Islamic militants with suspected ties to Iranian security forces have been terrorizing evangelical Christians with threats to ‘repent’ or die, it was reported Sunday. Christian Solidarity Worldwide has reported that 11 Iranian Christians who fled Iran in the wake of a government campaign against Christianity have received threats via email to ‘repent’ or face extrajudicial execution, from a group identifying itself as the ‘The Unknown Soldiers of The Hidden Imam.’ The threatening emails that were sent to each individual on Sept. 14 aspired to extend the arm of Iranian Islamic militancy beyond the borders of Iran by implying that, although the recipients have left Iran, they have not escaped the ‘acute eyes of the unknown soldiers.’” Read more.

Convert to Christianity Beheaded in Tunisia

‘It’s Just the Beginning’: The Unprecedented Persecution of Christians – “‘It’s just the beginning.’ That’s what one of the attackers said while bombing a church in eastern Kenya last week. Two people were killed and three others injured in the attack, which authorities believe was carried out by the al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab. This month at least 65 people were killed in the city of Damaturu in northeastern Nigeria, when Islamist insurgents bombed churches, mosques and police stations. The Boko Haram militant sect claimed responsibility.” Read more.

Reality Promptly Smacks Young Israelis In The Face After Engaging In ‘Interfaith Dialogue’ With Palestinian Muslims

If only reality would promptly smack the media and Western leadership just as hard …

“Moderate” Palestinian Cleric

By Shoebat Foundation – “We’d like to take a moment and vent to our readers, who will likely feel like venting themselves. For years, we – and others – have been screaming that the Palestinians have no interest in peace and it doesn’t matter what the Israelis offer (unless the offer includes mass suicide).

Now this from Lital Shemesh, via the Jewish Times:

I participated in the Dialogue for Peace Project for young Israelis and Palestinians who are politically involved in various frameworks. The project’s objective was to identify tomorrow’s leaders and bring them closer today, with the aim of bringing peace at some future time.

The project involved meetings every few weeks and a concluding seminar in Turkey.

On the third day of the seminar after we had become acquainted, had removed barriers, and split helpings of rachat Lukum [a halva-like almond Arab delicacy] as though there was never a partition wall between us, we began to touch upon many subjects which were painful for both sides. The Palestinians spoke of roadblocks and the IDF soldiers in the territories, while the Israeli side spoke of constant fear, murderous terrorist attacks, and rockets from Gaza.

The Israeli side, which included representatives from right and left, tried to understand the Palestinians’ vision of the end of the strife– “Let’s talk business.” The Israelis delved to understand how we can end the age-old, painful conflict. What red lines are they willing to be flexible on? What resolution will satisfy their aspirations? Where do they envision the future borders of the Palestinian State which they so crave?

We were shocked to discover that not a single one of them spoke of a Palestinian State, or to be more precise, of a two-state solution.

They spoke of one state – their state. They spoke of ruling Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Akko, Haifa, and the pain of the Nakba [lit. the tragedy – the establishment of the State of Israel]. There was no future for them. Only the past. “There is no legitimacy for Jews to live next to us” – this was their main message. “First, let them pay for what they perpetrated.”

Winston Churchill once wrote:

One day President Roosevelt told me that he was asking publicly for suggestions about what the war should be called. I said at once, “The Unnecessary War.” There never was a war more easy to stop than that which has just wrecked what was left of the world from the previous struggle.

Churchill warned of the Nazis and was dismissed by his countrymen as a crazy extremist from the lunatic fringe. That was before his warnings bore out. Had the been heeded, when he issued them, WWII would have been

Arkansas, Missouri, Arizona, Colorado: Four Fireballs At 4:00 AM During The Last 24 Hours

By Mike Hankey, American Meteor Society – “In the last 24 hours the AMS has received confirmed reports about 4 unique fireball events all occurring near 4:00 AM UTC time. The most recent event occurred in Arkansas and Missouri on May 19th near 3:37 UTC. At the same time 3:37 UTC 4 witnesses reported a fireball in Arizona. The distance between these two locations would inhibit witnesses from observing the same fireball from both locations. On May 18th two large fireball meteors were also spotted within an hour of each other, one over the central east coast and another in Colorado. Below is a table of the events in question.

AMS ID	UTC DATE AND TIME	ESTIMATED HEADING	STATES WITNESSED
1082	2013-05-18 03:47 UTC	South East -> North West	CO
1081	2013-05-18 04:26 UTC	South East -> North West	CT, MD, NJ, NY, OH, PA, VA, WV
1083	2013-05-19 03:37 UTC	South East -> North West	AR, IL, IN, MI, MO, OH, TN
1084	2013-05-19 03:37 UTC	South South East -> North North West	AZ

Below is a map of the four events, illustrating the common direction of these fireballs.

Google Earth users can download a KMZ file containing the trajectory estimates for these four events (you must unzip the file before opening in Google Earth). If you witnessed any of these fireball events please fill out an official fireball report.” Source – American Meteor Society.

‘Horrific’: 24 Elementary School Children Reportedly Killed After Monster Tornado Devastates Moore OK, Other Multiple Deaths Reported

I can’t even begin to imagine the pain that the people of Moore, Oklahoma are feeling today. They need our prayers desperately …

By LAUREN EFFRON and DEAN SCHABNER, ABC News – “A mammoth tornado carved a trail of destruction through the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, killing at least 10 people and ripping apart two elementary schools today, local authorities said.

David Barnes, the director of Oklahoma Emergency Management in Oklahoma County, told ABC News that a single twister tore through homes from Newcastle to Moore, a path of 12 miles. The damage was ‘widespread’ and people’s homes were completely destroyed, all the way to their foundations, he said.

At least 10 people have been confirmed dead in the storm’s aftermath, according to the state’s chief medical examiner’s office.

‘It is absolutely devastating, this is horrific,’ Oklahoma Lt. Gov Todd Lamb said. ‘We’re going to have fatalities. … We’re going to have significant injuries. … We just don’t know what those numbers are. Schools have been hit, a hospital has been hit, businesses have been flattened, neighborhoods have been wiped away — we don’t have the numbers in yet but it is going to be significant and it is going to be horrific.’

The National Weather Service said the preliminary rating of the Newcastle-Moore tornado was at least EF-4, meaning wind speeds of up to 200 mph.

Authorities said Briarwood Elementary School in Moore, Okla., received a ‘direct hit’ from the storm and was severely damaged. In anticipation of the severe weather this afternoon, schools in the Moore area did not release their students at the end of the school day, according to Oklahoma Emergency Management officials.” Read more.

Report: Monstrous Tornado Kills 2 Dozen Children At Elementary School – “An Oklahoma City television station is reporting that it is believed that at least two dozen children were killed at an elementary school after a monstrous tornado as much as a mile wide with winds up to 200 mph roared through, flattening entire neighborhoods, and setting buildings on fire. KFOR-TV reports that up to 24 children are believed dead at the Plaza Towers Elementary School and that it has turned into a search and recovery effort. The storm tore off the roof, knocked down walls and turned the playground into a mass of twisted plastic and metal.” Read more.

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Muslims Are Often All-Too Interested In ‘Interfaith Dialogue’ (Up Until Islam Becomes The Dominant Religion)

When he’s isn’t squandering millions of dollars in donations on lavish lifestyle perks for himself and his wife, “Ground Zero Mosque” Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf — largely regarded as a “moderate Imam” by the mainstream media — openly calls for “interfaith dialogue” between Muslims, Jews and Christians. But when those with whom he calls for such dialogue aren’t listening, he’s promoting the destruction of the State of Israel for “peaceful purposes.” I wonder what else he and others like him would love to see destroyed for “peaceful purposes” …

Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf Promoting Interfaith Dialogue On CNN

Paul Austin Murphy, American Thinker – “In the UK, non-Muslims have created a massive ‘interfaith movement’ which a small number of media-savvy Muslims have taken full advantage of. We’re always hearing about ‘community cohesion’ and the necessity of ‘embracing diversity’ from this movement. When an Islamic bomb goes off or yet another Muslim terrorist is arrested, the Church of Interfaith gets into full swing. When there’s another case of Muslim grooming, the C of I assures us that there are also many gangs of Anglican groomers. When there’s a protest against a super-mosque, yes, you’ve got it, the Interfaith zealots will be there begging the builders to make the mosque bigger and higher.

So how’s the Interfaith Movement doing in Muslim countries?

A report was released on May 7th by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). It revealed that out of 15 nations which were the worst offenders against religious freedom, 10 were Muslim/Islamic nations.

In these Islamic/Muslim countries, non-Muslims are persecuted, imprisoned and killed for their non-Islamic religious beliefs. This isn’t surprising since such persecution is written into Islam itself. That is, under sharia law all non-Muslims have a dhimmi status at best; at worst they are persecuted and often killed. The Koran itself has countless passages of hate towards ‘unbelievers’ and the hadiths are often even worse.

Since most Muslims in the UK are either Pakistani or of Pakistani heritage, let’s start with Pakistan.

In Pakistan there is a controversial blasphemy law. That will also explain why many British-Pakistani Muslims are agitating for blasphemy law here in the UK. Of course they don’t use those words — ‘sharia blasphemy law’. Instead they talk about ‘hate crimes’, ‘Islamophobia’, ‘racism’ and whatnot. In fact Muslims in the UK have been so successful of fusing the criticism of Islam with racism that we’ve now got the Religious and Racial Hatred Act of 2006.

Let’s stay with Pakistan. In that country there is massive persecution of all religious minorities, which often results in killings, arson and rioting.

(It’s ironic that one day Pakistani Muslims in the UK will be interfaithing and enjoying peace and tolerance, and the next they will be visiting Pakistan, as they often do, and seeing some of the massive violence and persecution — carried out by their relations? — of non-Muslims. This is the case with specifically Christians, which happens there on a day-to-day basis. I wonder what the UK’s Pakistani Muslims think about all this…)

Take Egypt, led by what Western governments deem to be the ‘moderate’ Muslim Brotherhood. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has explicitly stated that the Muslim Brotherhood has systematically

Doctrines Of Demons: New Report Says Islam Could Become The Dominant UK Religion In 10 Years

1 Timothy 4:1, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons …”

By JohnThomas Didymus, Digital Journal – “According to a new analysis of 2011 UK census, one in 10 people under 25 are Muslim, Christianity is declining 50 percent faster than previously thought and in 10 years Islam may become the dominant religion with only a minority identifying as Christian.

The analysis of the 2011 UK census by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that earlier analysis which showed only a 15 percent decline in Christianity was bolstered about 1.2 million foreign-born Christians such as Polish Catholics and Nigerian evangelicals. That is, foreign-born Christian immigrants masked the extent of decline of Christianity among the British-born population.

The Telegraph reports that the latest analysis showed that there were 5.3 million fewer British-born people professing Christianity, a decline of 15 per cent in a decade, and about 6.4 million increase in people describing themselves as having no faith.

In the same period, the number of of people professing Islam in England and Wales rose sharply by 75 percent. This massive surge was caused by about 600,000 foreign-born or immigrant Muslims.

According to The Telegraph, the massive demographic shift is being driven significantly by young people. The census analysis showed that nearly half of British Muslims are under the age of 25 and nearly a quarter of Christians over 65.” Read more.

Flashback: Au Revoir: Islam Set to Become Dominant Religion in France – “New research suggests there are now more practising Muslims in France than practising Catholics. While 64 percent of French people describe themselves as Roman Catholic, only 2.9 percent of the population actually practice the Catholic faith. That compares to 3.8 percent of the population who practice the Muslim faith. The research was carried out by the French Institute of Public Opinion on behalf of the Catholic newspaper La Croix.” Read more.

Flashback: ‘De-Christianization’: European Muslims Turn Churches Into Mosques, ‘We’re Here To Stay … Convert To Islam, And You Will Find Peace’ – “Bouchra Ismaili, a Rotterdam city councilman: ‘Listen up, crazy freaks, we’re here to stay. You’re the foreigners here, with Allah on my side I’m not afraid of anything. Take my advice: convert to Islam, and you will find peace’. The Middle East is full of churches turned into Islamic sites, like the Umayyad in Damascus, the Ibn Tulun in Cairo and the cathedral of St. Sophia in Instanbul… But unlike the Middle East, where non-Muslim sites were razed or violently converted to Islam, in Europe this process is voluntary.” Read more.

Flashback: Islam Lays Seige To Spain: Arson – Murder – Rape – Pillage – Riots – City Council and Mayor Cower – “The town of Salt, Spain has been besieged by riots, burnings, murder, rape and pillage, at the hands of hundreds of Morroccan Muslim immigrants. As you will see if you watch the video, the Spanish women of Salt cannot go out of their homes after 8:00 p.m., for fear of becoming rape victims. As one woman in the video puts it succinctly, they are ‘scared sh**less’.” Read more.

Egypt: Over 20,000 Muslims Shouting ‘Allah Is Greater’ Attack Church With Guns And Bricks Near Alexandria

AINI – “The escalation of Muslim attacks on Christian churches in Egypt continues unabated. This week two attacks were carried out, one in Alexandria and one in Menbal in Upper Egypt — both allegedly prompted by harassment of Muslim women. Yesterday the church of St. Mary, in the Dakhela district, west of Alexandria, was attacked by Molotov cocktails and bricks, causing the gate to burn and the breaking of most of the stained glass windows. One Copt was killed and several injured.

According to the official police explanation, the Copt Basem Ramzy Michael was seen by the Muslim Hamada Alloshy, a registered criminal, allegedly extending his body from his balcony to gaze at the flat of Alloshy’s sister, who lives on the ground floor. A quarrel broke out and when the church was attacked, hundreds of Copts hurried to the area to defend the church, among whom was 36-year-old Sedky Sherif, a father of three children. According to his nephew Rabah, who was with him at the time of his death, 1000 Copts were present and were attacked by over 20,000 Muslims, who were firing bird shots at them and throwing bricks. While the church was being attacked the Muslims were shouting ‘Allahu Akbar.’ Security forces were sent out to diffuse the situation and disperse the crowd. They made several arrests on both sides.

According to the Security report, the Copt ‘died of fright,’ suffering a heart attack after hearing the sound of gun fire. According to his family and those who saw him, his body was full of bruises and marks from bird shots.

The family and relatives of Sedky Sherif waited this morning at Kom el Dekka morgue to receive his body and the results of the autopsy. A death certificate was issued quoting cause of death as ‘under investigation.’ Weesa Fawzy from Al-Kalema Human Rights Center said that this was the first time that a death certificate is issued and the cause of death is still under investigation. ‘Has he been seen by the forensics team or not, so how are they still investigating when the body is already buried?’

Coptic Mina Milad Saber, 19 years, was severely injured in yesterday’s attack and underwent brain surgery, but this morning he was found shackled to his bed by the police for fear he might escape, although he is still in a coma.

Most Christians who were injured during the attack either went privately for treatment or quietly left hospital, ‘as it will end by them being arrested too,’ said Weesa Fawzy.” Read more.

Flashback: Egypt: Islamist Organizations Distribute Leaflets Calling For The Killing Of All Christians Who Will Not Convert To Islam – “According to today’s issue of El Fegr, ‘Elements of terrorist, jihadi organizations distributed leaflets today inciting for the killing of Copts in Suez, Ismailia, and Upper Egypt, promising them [Copts] a tragic end if they do not return to the truth.’ An image of a copy of the letter appears on El Fegr’s website. Titled ‘An Urgent and Important Notice,’ it begins by calling on ‘all brothers and sisters’ to ‘kill or physically attack the enemies of the religion of Allah—the Christians in all of Egypt’s provinces, the slaves of the Cross, Allah’s curse upon them…’” Read more.

Muslims No Longer Feeling The Need To Hide Their Murderous Tendencies Fly Nazi Flag In Israel, ‘They Wish To Annihilate Us’

By Gil Ronen, INN – “Hundreds of residents of Gush Etzion, south of Jerusalem, were astounded Monday morning to see an oversized Nazi flag flying next to a mosque in the Arab town of Beit Omar.

The residents notified the IDF.

A resident, Uri Arnon, told the Tazpit News Agency: ‘I felt we were going back 75 years, losing our hold on the land. The Arabs no longer feel the need to hide their murderous tendencies, announcing out loud that they wish to annihilate us.’

An IDF spokesman said that the flag was hung on an electrical line, and that they were waiting to professionals to come and remove it.” Source – INN.

Flashback: Hamas Islamist MP: Allah Used The Nazis To Punish The Jews, Now It’s Our Turn – “Allah punished the Israelites many times throughout history. He punished them by means of the Assyrians and the Babylonians. He punished them by means of the Companions of the Prophet in the Arabian Peninsula, at Al-Madina, and at Khaybar. He punished them by means of the Germans, and before that by means of the Romans. Today, it is the turn of the Islamic nation to punish them once again.” Watch video.

Flashback: Nazi Propaganda Website Starts Operation In Iran, Government Censors Do Nothing – “A pro-Nazi association now operates a Persian-language website in Iran, promoting anti-Semitism and memorializing Adolf Hitler, apparently with the approval of the Iranian government and its censors. The site, Nazicenter.ir, features videos of Nazi leaders and pictures of Hitler, and praises the Third Reich for nearly conquering the Western world. It also includes a public forum whose members routinely discuss their hatred of the Jewish people.” Read more.

Flashback: After Fall of Mubarak, Group Announces Intent to Form Nazi Party – “A group of Egyptian political activists have announced plans to set up a local version ‘of the Nazi party,’ an Egyptian newspaper reported on Thursday. Citing a leftist Egyptian news portal, the Al-Masry Al-Youm daily said that ‘the party’s founding deputy is a former military official,’ and that the party would be aimed at bringing ‘together prominent figures from the Egyptian society.’” Read more.

Flashback: The Palestinian Lie Machine ‘Welcomes’ Obama, Defames America And Declares Its Love For Hitler – “Two days before US President Barack Obama’s visit to Israel and the PA, the official PA daily chose to print anti-American hate speech along with pro-Hitler comments in an op-ed… The op-ed further implies that Hitler was greater than both Churchill and Roosevelt… The PA daily op-ed further asserts that negative attitudes toward Nazism are not objective but the result of the West’s victory: ‘Had Hitler won, Nazism would be an honor that people would be competing to belong to, and not a disgrace punishable by law.’” Read more.