INC UNLOCKS THE MEANING OF THE 7 SEALS
By Ravenousbird2004
Q: Mr. Felix Manalo claims that the ends of the earth refers to that time which began in 1914 with WWI and would last until the end of the world. According to Mr. Felix Manalo, “the ends of the earth” started at the end of the sixth seal and the beginning of the seventh, as mentioned in the book of Revelation. How could he tell us the meaning of the sixth and seventh seal when he never claims to know the meaning of the first five seals?
Brother Felix Manalo had proven that the first six seals or periods of the Christian era had already passed. He taught these things to the Church and anyone’s ignorance about them is not our fault. Anyway, a brief summary is given here.
When the FIRST FOUR SEALS were opened, the four horsemen were seen, one in each seal (cf. Rev. 6:1-8). The first horse and its rider, seen when the FIRST SEAL was opened, signifies the Church in the first century and Christ. The first seal, therefore, is the beginning of the Christian era at the time of Christ and the apostles.
The second horseman riding a red horse, seen when the SECOND SEAL was opened, symbolizes the false prophets who led the apostasy of the Christian Church and its transformation into the Catholic Church. Hence, the second seal is the period of apostasy.
The black horse and its rider, seen at the opening of the THIRD SEAL, prefigure the further corruption of the Christian faith at the hands of those whom the Bible calls “wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever” (cf. Jude 1:13 ). These were the Protestant preachers who emerged in the Reformation period.
The horseman, seen as the FOURTH SEAL was opened, indicates the continued spread and expansion of the Catholic Church, the extent of whose power had reached over a fourth of the earth.
When the FIFTH SEAL was opened (cf. Rev. 6:9), the souls of those slain by the apostate church, asking to be avenged, were seen. But they shall not be avenged until Judgment Day comes.
The Opening of the SIXTH SEAL is followed by a great earthquake, the darkening of the sun and the moon and the falling of the stars (cf. Rev. 6:12-13). These events occurred in the 18th and 19th centuries. The great earthquake occurred in Lisbon in 1755, the darkening of the sun and the moon in 1780 and the falling of the stars in 1833.
At the end of the sixth seal, which also signals the beginning of the seventh seal, the heavens were departed which caused the hiding of all kinds of men in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains (cf. Rev. 6:14-17). The departing of the heaven that caused this was the Great War that broke out in 1914. This war is also symbolized in the prophecy as the winds that were later seen being held by the four angels (cf. Rev. 7:1; Jer. 4:11 -12, 19). The end of the sixth seal which is also the beginning of the seventh seal is what is also referred to in Bible prophecies as the “ends of the earth.”
(God’s Message Magazine, April 1997 Issue)
...end...
UNDERSTANDING THE EVENTS THAT HAPPENED IN THE SIXTH SEAL
THE SIXTH SEAL: A PRELUDE to GOD’S FINAL WORK of SALVATION
THE PROPHECY IN Revelation 7:2-3 began fulfillment when Brother Felix Y. Manalo made initial triumphs in converting people to the Church of Christ. He did this by acting as God’s messenger in granting the seal of God or the Holy Spirit to those who listened to the gospel he preached (Ephesians 1:13-14). Concurrent with the outbreak of the First World War, the Church of Christ appeared in 1914 in the Far East (the Philippines) also in fulfillment of other Bible prophecies. By that wars end (1918), Brother Manalo was already presiding over a rapidly growing congregation.
We have provided extensive discussion of the details of Revelation 7:2-3 and other corollary prophecies in previous articles. They should be adequate in giving proof that indeed Brother Manalo is the last of God’s messengers. There is no question that God uses messengers to do His work of salvation on earth and that the authenticity of such messengers must be well established in prophecy.
It is helpful, however, to study additional evidences that further prove that the appearing of the Church of Christ through the last messenger is neither a coincidence nor the will of man. We want to establish the fact that the period of great upheavals culminating in the First World War (1914-1918) falls within the sixth seal of the Christian Era. (See editorial for an explanation on how to understand the seas of Revelation.) Through prophecy, the Bible gives us a virtual calendar of a series of remarkable events that truly happened. God has allowed the succession of such historical events to be written symbolically but He unlocked its true meaning only to His messenger. What happened in the sixth seal that led to the work of the last messenger into the seventh seal?
OPENING THE SIXTH SEAL
“When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became lie blood.” (Rev. 6:12, RSV)
Before proceeding, we must bear in mind that we are not looking for just any great earthquake it must be the one that precedes the darkening of the sun and the moon at the beginning of the sixth seal. When did these events take place?
“In 1755, the city of Lisbon was reduced to rubble in six minutes during one of the most devastating earthquakes ever recorded. The sea withdrew from the harbor and rushed back as a 17 meter- high (55 feet) tsunami, drowning hundreds. Smaller aftershocks caused landslides, fires broke out and by nightfall 60,000 people were dead. The shocks from this earthquake were felt over an area nearly 40 times as large as the United Kingdom.” (The Physical Earth, pp.28-29)
The great earthquake of Lisbon, Portugal in 1755 opened the sixth seal of the Christian Era. As the Bible predicted, after this “the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood.” When did this darkening of the sun and moon occur?
DARK DAY, Any day in which the sunlight appears to be remarkably dim or altogether absent. In New England the term is specifically applied to May 19, 1780, also known as Black Friday.” (The New International Encyclopedia, vol. Vi, p. 502)
Another source describes this amazing phenomenon in 1780:
“So, called on account of a remarkable darkness on that day extending over all New England… Birds sang their evening songs, disappeared, and became silent; fowls went to rest… candles were lighted in the houses…. The true cause of this remarkable phenomenon is not known.” (Webster’s Dictionary, 1869 edition)
We must note the progression of events from the great earthquake in 1755 to the dark day in 1780. What happened next as foretold in the Bible?
What happened next as foretold in the Bible?
THE STARS FELL FROM HEAVEN
“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.” (Revelation 6:13, KJV)
These cannot be the literal stars, each much larger than the earth size. But how was this fulfilled?
“On the night of November 13, 1833, hundreds of thousands of meteors were seen all over the eastern parts of the United States. It was after this meteor ‘shower’ that astronomers first began to make serious study of meteors.” (New Encyclopedia of Science, vol. 9, p. 1217)
Is this meteor shower in 1833 the same phenomenon which the Bible mention as “stars of heaven” falling? Another reference goes into the details of the same event:
“One of the most remarkable facts connected with shooting stars is that certain appearances of them are periodic. On most occasions they are sporadic, i.e. they appear singly, and traverse the sky in all directions. At other times they appear in swarm of thousands, and these swarms are periodic, or recur on the same days of the year. Attention was first directed to this fact on occasion of the prodigious swarm which appeared in North America between November 12 and 13, 1833, described by Professor Olmsted, of New Haven. The stars fell on this occasion like flakes of snow, to the number, as was estimated, of 240,000 in the space of nine hours.” (The New International Encyclopedia, vol. Xv, p. 495)
“The stars fell, as both the Bible and history record, during a spectacular swarm of meteorites which are commonly called “shooting stars.” Then, towards the end of the sixth seal, the following series of events are prophesied:
HEAVEN SCROLLED UP
“And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.” (Rev. 6:14,KJV)
Two things are mentioned here, namely the scrolling up of heaven and the movement of every mountain and island out of their places. Inasmuch as these events have not happened in the literal way, then they must be understood symbolically. If it is neither the actual heaven where God lives not the sky or the atmosphere around the earth, what is represented here as heaven according to the Bible?
“And I will break the pride of your power, and I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like brass.” (Lev. 26:19, RSV)
God here speaks of people who have their “heavens” made like iron. Who can have such powerful heaven and what does it signify?
“All the kings of the nations, all of them sleep in glory, everyone in his house.” (Isa. 14:18, NKJV)
The heaven of kings is their glory. This is the heaven referred to that will depart like scroll at the end of the sixth seal. How and when did this happen? To understand this better, we have to know first the meaning of the rest of the verse that says every mountain and island were moved out of their places.” Why? Because the loss of the kings glory (their heaven) resulted in the removal of the prophesied “mountains.” What do mountains represent in prophecy?
What do mountains represent in prophecy?
“This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; they are also seven kings five of whom have fallen. (Rev. 17:9-10, RSV)
Although the above verse concerns an entirely different prediction and event, what we want to establish is that mountains also signify kings in prophecy. Therefore, kings would be removed from their places. To be precise, the Bible predicts the breaking of the glory of kings or heads of states, resulting in their removal from power. When did this massive fall of kings and rulers of nations happen and by what kind of catastrophe?
“Come near, you nations to hear; and heed, you people! Let them hear, and all that is in it, the world and all things that come forth from it. For the indignation of the Lord is against all nations, and His fury against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them. He has given them over to the slaughter.
“All the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll; al their host shall fall down as the leaf falls from the vine, and as fruit falling from a fig tree.” (Isa. 34:1-2,4, NKJV)
The removal of kings from power resulted from a war among the nations. This confirms what Apostle John writes in the book of Revelation as the scrolling up or destruction of the heaven of kings. A war involving the nations of the world, a world war was predicted to the end of the sixth seal. What further proves that the prophesied displacement of mountains and islands was the effect of such a global war?
“I looked on the mountains, and lo, they were quaking, and all the hills moved to and fro.
“My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain! Oh, the walls of my heart! My heart is beating wildly; I cannot keep silent; for I hear the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. (Jer. 4:24, 19, RSV)
This world war would utilize “chariots like whirlwind” and “horses swifter than eagles,” and because of the immediate ruin they brought, all classes of people must hide. Which war used such weapons? Which one brought the nations together into mass slaughter?
THE GREAT WAR
“The First World War was unlike any war in the past,… This was the first war ‘in three dimensions.’ The first war in which cities were bombed from the air and winged warriors fought among clouds. Of course the airplanes of 1914 were not so fast, so formidable, nor so numerous as those of today. They were really more important as scouts (a kind of aerial ‘cavalry’), photographing enemy movements from above,… the soldiers had to turn themselves into beavers and moles and dig deep trenches…[the] British had invented the tank, or land battleship an armored automobile which could move on rough ground because it was built like a tractor…” (World History, pp. 478-479)
The prophesied war was the First World War which began in 1914. The prophesied “horses swifter than eagles” were the airplanes first used in that war for scouting and aerial bombardments. The prophesied “chariots like the whirlwind” were the tanks or armored fighting vehicles also introduced in the same war. Soldiers and civilians hid not only in caves and under rocks but they also built trenches and bomb shelters underground to avoid the destruction brought by airplanes. Thus, the First World War marked the end of the sixth seal of the Christian era. What was further predicted about that Great War?
THE BIG FOUR
"After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree." (Rev. 7:1, NKJV)
The next event was the "holding" of the "winds" by "four angels." "Wind" in prophecy also means war (Jer. 4:11-13, 19, RSV). The word "angel," although with several applications, denotes a messenger or someone sent or used by God for His purpose. Who may qualify then as an angel sent by God?
"Submit yourselves to ordinance of man for the Lord's sake; whether it be to the king, as supreme; or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well." (I Pt. 2:13-14, KJV)
Kings and governors (heads of states) are "sent" or used by God as His messengers to effect justice on the land. Therefore, four heads of states were predicted by the Bible to hold back the First World War. Does history confirm this fact?
"Orlando of Italy, Lloyd George of Great Britain, Clemenceau of France, and Wilson of America were called the Big Four when they met in Paris to confer concerning the treaty of Versailles." (World History, p. 494)
The Big Four, rulers of the earth's most powerful nations stopped the great war in 1918, proving the correctness of the Bible. At the same time that the war was ending, what prophecy was also being fulfilled?
ANOTHER ANGEL FROM THE EAST
“And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on earth, nor the sea, nor any tree.
“And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God; and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
“saying, ‘Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. (Rev. 7:1-3, KJV)
That wars end saw not only the ending (temporarily, since the war was just being “held” for a while) of the terrible devastation on earth, but also the appearing of “another angel” or messenger of God from the East, one who bears the “seal of the living God,” and who was sent to seal God’s servants. What kind of a messenger was he? Obviously, his work was different from that of the Big Four who persecuted and themselves stopped the war. The other angel was sent to grant the seal of God to people. How does Apostle Paul, an earlier messenger, explain the meaning of the seal of God and the manner by which it was granted to God’s servants in his time?
“In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of the glory.” (Eph. 1:13-14, KJV)
The seal of God is the promised Holy Spirit. To receive that seal, a person must first hear the word of truth or the gospel of salvation; then he must believe. So the work of this messenger from the east corresponds to the preaching of the true gospel, which if people would hear and believe, they would be sealed with the Holy Spirit.
As early as 1913, Brother Felix Y. Manalo began preaching the true gospel of salvation in the Far East. Those who believed were baptized into the Church of Christ which Brother Manalo had registered with the Philippine government at the same time the First World War broke out in 1914. At wars end in 1918, the work God gave him to do – the preaching of the gospel or the granting of God’s seal on believers – already showed spectacular results. It was “ascending,” as the prophecy proclaims.
These series of historical events that occurred during the sixth seal of the Christian Era clearly proves that Brother Felix Y. Manalo was commissioned by God as the last of His messengers. It also proves that this Church, which appeared as a consequence of the work entrusted to him, must then be accepted as the restored Church of Christ, Christ’s only way for saving man from the coming judgment.
(God’s Message Magazine, p. 2-5, June 1999)
**RAVENOUSBIRD2004**
FACEBOOK POST:
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1833924570244630&id=100008813134581&sfnsn=mo
