The red horse

“When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, ‘Come!’ Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large sword.” Revelation 6:3-4
Red has often been the colour associated with war. The armies of Assyria, Sparta, Rome, all wore red, along with the ‘redcoats’ and the Russian ‘Red Army’, and many others. Mars, the red planet, was so named after the Roman god of war. Red, for the blood that is spilt in war.
We read an interesting thing here: the horseman is given power “to take peace from the earth”. In political circles today, there is an emphasis on trying to end war and bring peace. Imagine what the world will be like when all the political leaders decide to stop negotiating and just fight. The rider is also given power “to make men slay each other”. Armies that might have formerly fought together side-by-side against a common enemy, will turn on each other.
The Antichrist comes with a bow, a covenant of peace for Israel. But the end result is only worldwide war. He will be the man of the hour – after the dust settles from this war, he will be the one standing and the obvious leader. He will unite the nations to come together under a one-world government, with himself at the head. But there is no mistaking it: the Tribulation will be a terrible time for those left on the earth.