Wednesday, June 05, 2019

The four horsemen of the Apocalypse

6 Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer.

3 When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 And out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.

5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a black horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine!”

7 When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 And I looked, and behold, a pale horse! And its rider's name was Death, and Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth (Rev 6:1-8).

For unbelievers, as well as many Bible scholars, Revelation is a period piece. Whatever its prophetic pretensions, the historical horizon is sealed in the 1C. But it's striking to consider how modern this vision is:

1. The white horse apparently represents aggressive warfare. As we know, 2000 years down the pike, warfare remains a perennial feature of life on earth. So there may seem to be nothing prescient about that vision. Yet you have utopians like Steven Pinker (The Better Angels of our Nature) who think secularization is making the world less violent. Likewise, secular humanists thought organizations like the United Nations would prevent war. If countries just have a forum in which to talk through their disagreements. 

2. The red horse apparently represents social unrest, the breakdown of civil authority. 

3. And that, in turn, may tie into the black horse, which seems to represent the consequences of economic manipulation.

i) In the 1C, the diversion of arable land to produce luxury items for the ruling class created food shortages in staple crops. For a modern-day parallel, consider the economic implosion of Venezuela. 

ii) Cities are especially vulnerable because they rely on having food, water and other necessities supplied from the outside. Cities lack the local resources to be sustainable on their own. Vast population centers become completely dependent on commerce which, if disrupted, precipitates urban catastrophe in a few days. The flourishing of urban populations is even more precarious in a hitech civilization than it was in the 1C. 

4. Among other things, the pale horse represents epidemics triggered by infectious disease. You might think this is one of the most dated aspects of the vision. Hasn't modern medicine done much to eradicate pandemics? True, but that could revert overnight:

i) Overprescription of antibiotics and antivirals has generated superbugs. 

ii) Progressive policies funnel immigrants into the country who haven't been screened for contagious disease. In addition, traditional Muslims have prescientific views of hygiene. 

iv) The general public is losing resistance to contagious disease, due both to the diluting effect of uncontrolled immigration–as well as progressive elites at the helm of the antivaxxer movement.  

iii) Likewise, welfare is a magnet for urban concentrations of homeless men and women. This leads to the breakdown of public sanitation. 

iv) In addition, green policies promote composting rather than standard food disposal. That attracts rats, which multiply exponentially. 

A side effect of affluence is to make many people indulge a false sense of security. Affluence creates a buffer. The affluent aren't used to living on the edge, where there's no margin for error. They lose their sense of danger. In addition, most folks are crisis-driven. Hazards are an abstraction. They are used to feeling safe, so they lower their guard. But the world is an unforgiving place. Just consider the following scenario:


The warning is focussed on LA, but all up and down the West coast, urban centers have become a haven for illegal immigrants and the homeless. While many infections diseases are curable, the system is easily overloaded. For instance, the black plague is curable, but because it's rare, hospitals lack the resources to contain a serious outbreak. 

So the vision in Rev 6:1-8, far from being obsolete, dovetails with contemporary conditions. 

10 comments:

  1. Progressive elites aren’t really at the helm of the anti-vaccination movement. In most states that are passing really strict mandatory vaccination bills, it’s progressive Democrats pushing that effort. The current battle in California is one example.Statistically, it’s wealthy intelligent parents who decline vaccinations And those wise people often vote Republican

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    1. "And those wise people often vote Republican"

      Where's the supporting data?

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    2. "Progressive elites aren’t really at the helm of the anti-vaccination movement. In most states that are passing really strict mandatory vaccination bills, it’s progressive Democrats pushing that effort. The current battle in California is one example.Statistically, it’s wealthy intelligent parents who decline vaccinations And those wise people often vote Republican"

      You mean well-known anti-vaccination "hot spots" like Portland, Seattle, Boulder, and coastal California (e.g. Marin County)?

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    3. Yes, those places have democratic legislatures which are pushing these strict anti- exemption laws. In my community, it’s the smart homeschool conservatives questioning the medical establishment

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    4. "In my community, it’s the smart homeschool conservatives questioning the medical establishment."

      Plenty of "smart" people take dumb positions.

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  2. "you have utopians like Steven Pinkerton"

    I think that's Steven (Stephen?) Pinker.

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  3. The four horsemen are endlessly fascinating. I have seen the debate couched in terms of whether the horsemen ride throughout history or at the end times?

    There is debate about the identity of the first rider. SDAs say the first rider is Christ. He goes through history conquering. But the bow symbolises not by warfare. Most commentators say the first rider is the Antichrist. The bow symbolises he will conquer by diplomacy. When Christ appears he has a sword not a bow. Also the fact that a crown is given to him suggests he is a mere mortal.

    Most commentators say the red horse symbolises war. The black horse is interesting as it seems to symbolise famine. But do not harm the oil or wine which are symbols for wealth. There would be widespread famine in the end times while the elite are living in luxury. You can see today we are heading there today.

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  4. Other means by which diseases might return:

    1. Humans weaponizing pathogens. Biowarfare. Like the Soviet Biopreparat successfully weaponizing the plague, smallpox, and anthrax. Not to mention the Biopreparat successfully hybridized the smallpox with ebola (Ebolapox).

    2. Deadly pathogens stored in facilities are accidentally released.

    3. Long buried ("prehistoric") dangerous diseases (e.g. anthrax). This could partly be due to melting permafrost reviving dormant diseases.

    4. Antibiotic, antiviral, and other related R&D fails to keep up with the microevolution of pathogens. This is already happening.

    5. Weakened human immune systems in subsequent generations (e.g. hygiene hypothesis).

    6. It's become trendy in certain parts of the world to eat foods that might not be safe to eat under certain circumstances (e.g. some raw meats).

    7. Sexually transmitted diseases due to increased rates of sexual promiscuity. For example, syphilis was almost eradicated in the US near the turn of the 21st century, but today it's more prevalent than ever.

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    Replies
    1. I’m not sad to see syphilis making a come back.

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    2. Aleksandra

      "I’m not sad to see syphilis making a come back."

      ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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