Who is the rider on the White horse in Revelation chapter 6?

Answer 1

The Antichrist.

ANOTHER ANSWER:

The "Apocalypse" is Jesus Christ's "Revelation" [Rev.1:1]. Therefore, it's He, ONLY, who can interpret what the "seven seals on the scroll mean" -- not John or any other man:

"...I wept much, because NO MAN WAS FOUND WORTHY TO OPEN AND READ THE BOOK, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders [whom John saw in this vision of his visit to the 'third heaven' - Rev.4:1-2] saith unto me, 'Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David [Jesus Christ], hath prevailed TO OPEN THE BOOK, AND TO LOOSE THE SEVEN SEALS THEREOF.'" (Rev.5:4-5)

"And He came and took the Book... and they sung a new song, saying, 'THOU ART WORTHY TO TAKE THE BOOK [scroll], and TO OPEN THE SEALS THEREOF..." (verses 7-9).

"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. And I saw, and behold A WHITE HORSE: and he that sat on him had a BOW; and a CROWN was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer."

Many folks misinterpret this rider as "Christ" Himself... but Jesus Christ [who also rides a "white horse"] has MANY CROWNS [not one]... and His weapon of choice is A TWO-EDGED SWORD [the Word Powerful Word of God that He wields from His mouth -- Heb.,4:12 & Rev.19:12-15]... not a BOW.

The "Lion of the tribe of Judah" [Jesus Christ] doesn't interpret the meaning of these seals in the "parable" that is the book of Revelation.

Jesus always spoke parables so that THE GENERAL PUBLIC WOULD NOT UNDERSTAND what He was saying:

Jesus said to those listening to His parables: "'Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand!' His disciples came and asked Him, 'WHY DO YOU ALWAYS TELL STORIES [parables] WHEN YOU TALK TO THE PEOPLE?'" (Matt.13:9-10 NLT New Living Translation)

"Then He explained to them, 'YOU HAVE BEEN PERMITTED TO UNDERSTAND THE SECRETS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, but OTHERS HAVE NOT. To those who are OPENED TO MY TEACHING, MORE UNDERSTANDING WILL BE GIVEN, and they will HAVE AN ABUNDANCE OF KNOWLEDGE. But to those who ARE NOT LISTENING, even what they have will be taken away from them. THAT IS WHY I TELL THESE STORIES [parables], people SEE WHAT I DO, but THEY DON'T REALLY SEE. They HEAR WHAT I SAY, but THEY DON'T REALLY HEAR, and THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND. This fulfills the prophesy of Isaiah, which says:

''You will hear My Words, but you will not understand;

you will see what I do, but YOU WILL NOT PERCEIVE ITS MEANING.

For the hearts of these people are hardened, and THEIR EARS CANNOT HEAR,

and they have CLOSED THEIR EYES - so THEIR EYES CANNOT SEE,

and THEIR EARS CANNOT HEAR,

and THEIR HEARTS CANNOT UNDERSTAND,

and they CANNOT TURN TO ME and LET ME HEAL THEM.'' " (verses 11-15)

In other words, the book of Revelation [the Apocalypse] was "told to John" and recorded AS A PARABLE, for the consumption of the general public... SO THEY WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND what it's saying -- [and, O, how this book has been studied and MIS-interpreted by most of the scholars of the world]. But if anyone has any chance of understanding what it truly means... they have to "GO TO JESUS PRIVATELY" as His disciples did FOR HIS EXPLANATION OF HIS PARABLES!

"All these things spake Jesus unto the multitudes IN PARABLES; and without a parable SPAKE HE NOT UNTO THEM... Then Jesus SENT THE MULTITUDE AWAY, and went into the [HIS] house: and HIS DISCIPLES CAME UNTO HIM [in the privacy of His house], saying, 'DECLARE UNTO US THE PARABLE OF THE TARES IN THE FIELD.'" (Matt.13:34-36)

Jesus' own disciples didn't understand what the parables meant UNTIL THEY WERE ALONE WITH HIM -- PRIVATELY!

Therefore, in order to know and understand WHO THE RIDER on the WHITE HORSE of Revelation 6 is; you have to go to the place [or places] in The Bible where Jesus speaks PRIVATELY to His disciples regarding THE SAME END TIME PROPHECIES about which the book of Revelation speaks. Like in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21... where:

"...the disciples CAME UNTO HIM PRIVATELY, saying, 'TELL US, WHEN SHALL THESE THINGS BE? And WHAT SHALL BE THE SIGN OF THY COMING [when will you reveal yourself as King], and of THE END OF THE WORLD[the end of the age; or the conclusion of your Father's plan]?"

THE VERY NEXT THING Jesus says to them, IN PRIVATE... corresponds CHRONOLOGICALLY to THE VERY FIRST SEAL THAT HE STRIPS OFF OF THE SCROLL. THE WHITE HORSE! So, this is Jesus' PRIVATE interpretation [FOR THOSE WILLING TO HEAR, LISTEN AND UNDERSTAND] of the Rider on the White Horse of the Apocalypse:

"And Jesus answered and said unto them, 'TAKE HEED THAT NO MAN DECEIVE YOU. FOR MANY SHALL COME IN MY NAME, SAYING, I AM CHRIST [or I represent Christ; or I am a Christian]; AND SHALL DECEIVE MANY." (Matt.24:4-5)

The rider of the white horse is the FIRST of the famous FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE. And he is FALSE RELIGION!

Jesus launches, then, for His disciples straight into the meaning of the next three seals [the other three horsemen] of Revelation 6:

"And ye shall hear of WARS and RUMOURS OF WARS[the red horse]: see that ye be not troubled: for THESE THINGS MUST COME TO PASS, but THE END IS NOT YET. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be FAMINES [the black horse], and PESTILENCES [diseases; the pale horse], and earthquakes, in divers places. ALL THESE ARE THE BEGINNING OF SORROWS [tribulation]." (Matt.24:6-8)

The Four Horsemen of Revelation [FALSE RELIGION, WAR, FAMINES, DISEASES and DEATH] are the four main SORROWS that make up the "normal, average" DAY-IN-THE-LIFE on planet earth FOR ALL PEOPLE! Jesus reveals that they are both NECESSARY and THE BEGINNING of SORROWS [the things that shall eventually grow and increase, globally, and usher in THE GREAT TRIBULATION -- the next seal 5 of Revelation 6].

Throughout the history of the world, FALSE RELIGIOUS BELIEFS [the white horse] have been the CAUSE of MOST [if not ALL, directly or indirectly] of the wars in the world... the prime element for all the world's sorrows, woes, and wars. [look at the religion-based terrorism today that plagues every nation on earth]. The nations are confused and vexed by it.... and it grows more terrifying and horrifying, daily -- building into what prophecy reveals as the ushering in of what Jesus calls in the KJV "Great Tribulation" [see Matt.24:21-22]. The NLT calls it "Great Horror." Weymouth's New Testament [WEY] calls it "Greater Suffering." Williams New Testament [MNT] calls it "Greater Misery" "...than ever has been since the world began."

Jesus tells His servants to beware of "false religion" in general [as the Old Testament warns the Israelites to have nothing to do with the religions and practices of the pagan nations around them]. But His warning also specifically warns His servants of FALSE CHRISTS, or CHRISTIANITY -- warning them regarding the deceptive perversion of His teachings in His Holy Name. He warns them of people coming in His name, claiming to represent Him... some even claiming to BE Him!

[God doesn't call His church 'Christians' or 'Christianity'... THE WORLD DOES - see Acts 11:26: the disciples in Antioch didn't name themselves 'Christians' -- the estranged unconverted Gentile friends and relatives of those disciples of Christ called them that. The word 'Christian(s)' is inspired in the Bible THREE TIMES: and they are not used in terms of endearment toward God's servants -- Acts 11:26: 26:28 & I Peter 4:16].

The Rider of Revelation's White Horse is FALSE RELIGION!

Answer 2

Jesus is the only One who can say: "...no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll [with the seven seals] and read it... But... 'Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Heir to David's throne, has conquered. HE IS WORTHY TO OPEN THE SCROLL and BREAK ITS SEVEN SEALS.'" (Rev.5:3-5 NLT New Living Translation)

In Revelation's 6th chapter we see Jesus "strip away SIX of the SEVEN seals" on the scroll [or book that He took from His Father's hand - verse 7]. But He doesn't explain the meaning of any of them at the time of John's vision or his recording of it.

The reason is that John's vision of "Jesus' Revealing of the Future" [Rev.1:1] is a PARABLE. Jesus ALWAYS SPOKE IN PARABLES FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC'S CONSUMPTION... and He always WENT AWAY SOMEWHERE PRIVATELY WITH HIS DISCIPLES TO EXPLAIN HIS PARABLES TO THEM!

"His disciples came and asked Him [privately, after the crowds were dispersed], 'Why do you always tell stories [parables] when you talk to the people? Then He explained to them, 'You have been PERMITTED to Understand the secrets of the Kingdom of heaven, but OTHERS HAVE NOT... That is why I tell these stories [parables], because people see what I do, but they don't really see. They hear what I say, but they don't really hear, and they don't understand.

This fulfills he prophecy of Isaiah, which says:

'You will hear My Words, but you will not understand;

you will see what I do, but you will not perceive its meaning.

For the hearts of these people are hardened,

and their ears cannot hear,

and they have closed their eyes- so their eyes cannot see,

and their ears cannot hear,

and their hearts cannot understand,

and THEY CANNOT TURN TO ME AND LET ME HEAL THEM.'

Blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. (Matt.10:11-16 NLT)

The Apocalypse [or Revelation, or The Revealing] has been a "parable of Jesus Christ" for centuries. Scholars and non-scholars alike have been reading it for a long time. And without Jesus "private interpretation" of what it means, millions of people have applied their own take as to what it means. Some may have been close to understanding, most have not.

But if we want to know exactly what it means, we have to go to the place(s) in God's recorded Word where Jesus explains PRIVATELY to His disciples regarding the EVENTS OF THE LAST DAYS of God's plan.

"As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds... He told them, 'Do you see all these buildings? I assure you, they will be so COMPLETELY DEMOLISHED that not one stone will be left on top of another!' Later, Jesus sat on the slopes of the Mount of Olives [a place where He often took His disciples where the crowds could not follow, because of the steep terrain]. His disciples CAME TO HIM PRIVATELY and asked, 'When will all this take place? And will there be any sign ahead of time to signal your return and the END OF THE WORLD [age]?"

This is commonly known as the "Olivet Prophecy"... Jesus private revealing to His disciples regarding the events that John would later record from his vision [the Apocalypse, or Revelation]. It is HERE in God's Word where Jesus' servants must go to GET HIS INTERPRETATION OF THE SEALS OF THE SCROLL IN REVELATION. Jesus' answer to His disciples' questions on the Mount of Olives FOLLOWS THE CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER OF THE STRIPPING AWAY OF THE SEALS ON THE SCROLL IN REVEALTION 6.

And the description of the WHITE HORSE... the FIRST SEAL STRIPPED AWAY... is the FIRST THING JESUS EXPLAINS TO HIS DISCIPLES on the Mount of Olives:

"...DON'T LET ANYONE MISLEAD YOU. For MANY WILL COME IN MY NAME, saying, 'I am the Messiah.' THEY WILL LEAD MANY ASTRAY." (Matt.24:4-5 NLT)

Do you get the meaning of the White Horse? Do you understand it? Do you believe it? Most people over the centuries HAVE NOT UNDERSTOOD NOR BELIEVED WHAT JESUS' VERY FIRST WARNING TO HIS SERVANTS TRULY IS!

The White Horse... is Jesus' warning to His servants is for them TO BEWARE of FALSE CHRISTIANITY!!!

Modern professing "Christianity" is composed of HUNDREDS OF DENOMINATIONAL RELIGIOUS FACTIONS CLAIMING TO BELIEVE IN CHRIST. And according to Jesus... they are leading... and have led THE MANY ASTRAY FROM THE TRUTH OF GOD'S WORD.

Jesus is talking about GLOBAL DECEPTION here... not about a few CRACK-POT CULTS. But that's the description of the White Horse of Revelation... believe it, or not.