The Souls Under the Altar
There are 7 Seals on Heaven's mysterious Scroll, and the 4 Horsemen are only the first four Seals... Revelation 6:9 When the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood? Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been. - NIV The 5th Seal is clearly about persecution of Christians. There will be many martyrs after the 5th Seal is broken. The sorting and sifting that God is doing on the earth is for Christians as well. Nothing sorts our priorities better than facing hardship for what we believe. And, the Church always grew whenever there was persecution. The Gospel gets noticed when conditions are this extreme. We can hope that many more souls will be added to God's family during this time. It's interesting to see how the martyrs are treated with special favor, and even tenderness, in heaven. They are given special robes to wear. The place under the altar is a place of honor. And once again, perhaps those who die are the lucky ones. Can things get any worse here on earth? Oh yes. The 6th Seal will begin the chaos and upheaval of the earth itself. In the stained glass window, below, St John is depicted in the corner, to remind us that this is a vision of things to come: