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TALK ON THE BOOK OF REVELATION

Part 6

31st January 2013

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Continuing with our interpretation of the Book of Revelation. Last week we saw the open door to heaven, the four beasts which were the angelic creatures known as the Cherubim and Seraphim, the twenty four elders who represent the saints and the sealed book with the mysteries of God that no created being can open. This brought great distress to John because the Book would reveal the outcome of the Church in the last days. But one of the elders consoled John who was weeping by telling him there was someone who was worthy and able to open the book, the slain lamb who he identified as the Lion of the tribe of Juda, and the Root of David, meaning the Messiah, meaning Jesus Christ, meaning God incarnate. So today we pick up John's vision from where we left off. He says:     

"And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth."

The slain lamb is Jesus Christ, the crucifixional sacrifice. If you remember the Baptism story, St. John the Baptist pointed Christ out and said "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world" which we also sing in the Great Doxology at the end of matins: "O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, that takest away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us, Thou that takest away the sins of the world." The slain Lamb, Jesus Christ assumes his position on this entire stage.

The image is complete. We have here an image of the Holy Trinity We have the Father on the throne; the Holy Spirit represented by the seven lamps, and the Son, Jesus Christ. But we must be careful how we understand this; this is an image, an icon, a symbol, but not God in essence, because God is invisible, incomprehensible and indescribable. No one can see God and live, not even the angels. The image that John sees is not a true image but only an image or symbol of the Holy Trinity regarding the salvation of the world. It is an image of the Father sending both the Holy Spirit and the Son into the world. The Son as God-man as having been sent into the world, now stands in the midst of the four creatures and in the midst of the elders showing that he mediates between God and man.

Christ is shown as a Lamb, a defenceless and weak animal, however the Lamb in this image has seven horns and seven eyes. In the Old Testament the word horn is used metaphorically to signify honour and strength because horns are the chief weapons and ornaments of the animals which possess them, hence they are used as a type of victory and in a more concrete sense it means king or kingdom. The seven horns therefore show the fullness of the royal authority and the power of the Lamb over the entire visible and invisible creation, over the angels, over people and over demons. Christ will reign and every knee shall bow down before him, those in heaven, those on earth and those underneath the earth.

Of the seven eyes, the Prophet Zachariah writes: "These are the seven eyes of the Lord, that look upon all the earth." (Zach. 4:10) Thus the seven eyes show that the Lamb is the Lord. The seven eyes are also the Holy Spirit. We had the seven lamps before the throne and now the seven eyes. They are two different symbols but one and the same subject: the Holy Spirit in its fullness. But why two symbols? The answer is simply because both the Father and the Son send out the Holy Spirit to the world. John in his Gospel gives us this very important dogma concerning the Holy Trinity. Christ speaking says: "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever." (John 14:16) Here he tells us the he will ask the Father to send the Holy Spirit, but in a few verses down he will say: "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me." (John 15:26) Therefore the Father sends the Holy Spirit, but the Son also sends the Holy Spirit as well, but only proceeds from the Father. This is important to understand because one of the main differences we have with the Roman Catholic Church is the dogma known as the Filioque of which we have spoken of in detail in the past. It has to do with the Creed, the Symbol of Faith that we proclaim at every Liturgy. Filioque is Latin for "and from the Son" and is an addition inserted into the Creed by the Latin Church. In its original form, preserved by the Orthodox Church, the Creed states: “And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life, Who proceedeth from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified”. The Roman Catholic Church added the words: “And from the Son” so that it now reads: “Who proceedeth from the Father and from the Son”. These few words contributed to the already unstable and fragile relationship between the Churches of Rome and Constantinople, and was one of the main reasons for the Great Schism. The scripture clearly says that the Holy Spirit is sent by both the Father and the Son but only proceeds from the Father. To be sent and to proceed are two very different matters. The term proceed shows the life of the Holy Spirit in relation to the Father whereas the term send shows the life of the Holy Spirit in relation to the world. 

"And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne. And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints."

The Lamb takes the book from the Father; this action of the Lamb receiving the book is considered a worldwide historical event and for this reason it brings forth the worship of the angelic world and of the saints. The entire scene is characterised as a liturgy in heaven in all its heavenly majesty. The elders each had a harp and each held a golden vial full of odours, which John tells us are the prayers of the saints. But why golden vials, in other words, golden censers? Why not tin or clay? The need for luxury prevails so that the lofty worship of God may be accentuated and this to show that the worship of God must be maintained on a high level. This may serve as an answer to those who accuse us of spending money on luxurious decorations and costly vestments in Church. They say that Christ taught humility and poverty and the Church should reflect this teaching. And yes, this must be our way of life in our private and social life, but when it comes to worshipping God we must offer him only the best that we can offer.

In the Old Testament God himself gives meticulous details of how his Temple should be decorated and the materials and precious stones that should be used in the priest's vestments. No expense was spared. The high-priest's breastplate was adorned with real stones of diamond, emerald, ruby, topaz, onyx, amethyst and many more and the breastplate was of real gold. Today our Gospel book and crosses we wear during the Liturgy may be gold adorned with jewels, but everything is false. Our Gospels and Crosses are not of real gold and the stones are just coloured imitations. Christ the man was humble and meek, but Christ God is majestic and we do not offer a king a vessel of clay when we can offer him a vessel of gold.  

Thus the elders offer the prayers of the saints with golden censers. This also answers to the protestant refusal to pray to the saints because as they quote from scripture, there is only one mediator before God and man and that is Jesus Christ. But here, the book of Revelation comes and contradicts this false teaching and we see that the prayers of the saints are offered to God for the world. Their prayers are symbolically presented as incense that rises up to the throne of God. The 140th Psalm says: "Let my prayer be set forth before Thee as incense" and the incense we offer in Church also has this meaning; it is our prayers and those of the church offered to God whom we ask to accept upon his most heavenly altar; and in return to have mercy upon us and send down upon us the grace of his most Holy Spirit. The saints are all the faithful of both the church militant and the church triumphant which shows here that the saints can pray for others, for example, the twenty four elders who are the saints of the church triumphant can pray for the church militant, for us, but can also pray for themselves.

"And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation."

And they sung a new song, a new ode. In the Old Testament the people sung a new song at every new supernatural and world saving event like when Israel passed over the Red Sea. David composed a new song when the house was built after the captivity, and in the same nature are the New Testament songs of the Mother of God and Zacharias, John the Baptist's father. New songs were sung as a thanksgiving for the great and bountiful blessings received from God. In general singing a song reflects rejoicing and the non ability to sing reflects depression and hardship. If you remember Psalm 136 beginning "By the rivers of Babylon" made famous many years ago by the group Boney M; it refers to the captivity of the Jews in Babylon and how their captives asked them to sing one of the songs of Zion, and the Psalm continues saying "How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?" How could they sing even an old song, they felt that God had deserted them. There was no cause to sing, but here the Slain Lamb takes the book and a new song is sung; a new song because the seals of the book will be opened and the mysteries concerning the future of the church will be unravelled. So when something important like this happens, the saints chant a new ode. "Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof." Notice that we saw last week the hymn of the angels Holy, holy, holy is the Lord almighty. The angels sing in the third person, but here the elders sing in the second person, they sing directly to the Slain Lamb and this is characteristic of people, to hymn directly to God, you Lord, I praise you O Lord.

Thou art worthy - why? Because "thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation." The KJB has a small mistranslation here when it says "and hast redeemed us to God" The original Greek says "and hast redeemed them" and not us. Of course the elders have also been redeemed, but them refers to those people from every race who have heard the Word of God and have accepted Christ into their hearts. There is a prophecy that says the end will come when the preaching of the Gospel is heard in all the ends of the world. This doesn't mean that everyone will become a Christian, but simply that all people at some time will have heard the preaching of the Gospel. The New Testament has been translated into more than 2,000 of the estimated 6,600 languages and dialects around the world and of the 7 billion people of the world, an estimated 2.3 billion belong to some Christian denomination. So there are 4.7 billion people of who a small majority may still not have heard of Jesus Christ, but the rest have heard and rejected him. But of those of every race and tongue who have accepted his word, John says that through his sacrifice on the Cross he has redeemed them to God

"And hast made them unto our God kings and priests: and they shall reign on the earth."

We should not imagine that we will be kings like we have today who rule with power and great wealth from their palaces. The beatitude says: "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." But how will the meek inherit the earth? If I am meek, will I not yield when some greedy person comes along and wants to grab my property and leave me homeless? The meek will indeed inherit the earth, but which earth? The new earth and the new heaven. In this new order after the resurrection from the dead, we will have no need for property and earthly wealth; all the earth will belong to each of us. What need will we have for houses; we will have no need for a roof to protect us from the weather, we will have no need for beds to sleep in, no kitchen to cook, no armchairs to relax and watch TV: all these things will no longer exist.

"And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing."

The image of the heavenly liturgy is continuously being completed; around the elders were thousands and thousands and thousands of angels. The number of the angels is endless; we cannot even imagine their numbers. And all these millions and billions of angels are worshipping God with a loud voice. They are echoing the song of the elders: worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches etc. The angels hymn the Lamb with seven adjectives; power, riches, wisdom, strength, honour, glory, and blessing. In the Old Testament all these are attributed to God, to Yahweh, and now the angels worship the Lamb with the same attributes showing that the Lamb has divine quality, he is God.  

And to the glorification of the elders and the innumerable angels the ode of every creature comes to be added in all the visible and invisible world. A further completion of the heavenly liturgy:    

"And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever."

So with this universal glorification of God, this unity of all of God's visible and invisible creation glorifying God as one church we now come to the opening of the seven seals of the book. But before we see the first vision, something must be said about how the fathers interpret the events. Here we have seven seals and after this we will have seven trumpets and after the trumpets seven vials. Are these in chronological order, in other words do they take place one after the other? Some events are according to a chronological order because they only happen once, for example we will see with the opening of the sixth seal that the sun will be darkened and the moon will become as blood. These are events that will only happen once and so they follow a chronological order, but other events are given what the fathers call a circular interpretation. In other words they are events that continually take place within the history of the Church. If we imagine a mountain and starting from the bottom, there is a vertical line reaching to the top which signifies some event in history. We cannot climb vertically so for us to get to the top we have to follow a road that goes around and around in a spiral shape unto it reaches the summit. As we go around the mountain we will always come back to the line from whence we started but a little higher. In other words there are events that are continually taking place from the beginning of Christianity and will continue to happen until the end of time. These then are given a circular interpretation which we will see as the visions are revealed.   

"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 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."

When it says that the Lamb opened one of the seals, it doesn't mean that he opened any seal at random; it means he opened the number one of the seals, the first seal. The same applies to the beast, it says one of the four beasts. It is rather the first of the four beast which looked like a lion and that is why the noise that was heard was like thunder, it was the roar of a lion. And the beast that was like a lion said come. The KJV wrongly translated this with "come and see" as though the beast was telling John to come and see into the book, but the Greek says simply "come" and this "come" is not directed towards John but to the horse-rider, he is telling the rider to come forth from out of the book so that the vision can be seen and revealed. See how a simple word addition can change the whole meaning; come and see would be telling John to look into the book, but come on its own brings the horse and his rider out of the book and onto the stage in full view of everyone.

And John says he saw a white horse and he that sat on it had a bow and was given a crown and he went forth conquering and to conquer. A white horse usually symbolizes victory and a crown a kingdom and while these are relevant in the interpretation they serve to show much more. The white horse symbolizes evangelisation as a benevolent action towards men while the crown shows the dominion and the victory. If then the white horse symbolizes evangelisation, who is the one sitting on the white horse? This is the Gospel; it is Christianity, which is proclaimed unto the gentiles. It is the Gospel through the mouth of the apostles and means the generation of the apostles. The preaching of the Gospel was like an arrow stretching out against demons, they had to fight the demons, the opposing power so that the Gospel could prevail upon the earth. Here then we have a beautiful hope-bearing announcement of the Gospel message which calls all of humanity to return to God to be saved; it is the dawn of the Gospel, the dawn of Christianity to the gentiles. This was the first victory, the spreading of Christianity to the then known world and was truly a colossal and triumphant victory: the Church spread out into all the earth. And here we also see the circular interpretation: the Gospel was preached then; did this preaching stop with the apostles? Has not the Gospel been preached continually for two thousand years, did we not see earlier that today the Gospel message has been translated into thousand of different languages, so we have the repeated or constant preaching of the Gospel throughout the ages, which shows the circular interpretation. It is repeated over and over again.

We also have something else here. It says he came conquering and to conquer. So it was not a one time event, he was victorious but continues to be victorious. He that sat on the horse can also represent every Christian. If you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God then you have overcome the world and consequently you are also a victor, and you are like a horseman on a white horse. The vision therefore refers to two victories, the first: the victory of the spreading of the Gospel and the return of the people to God, and the second victory: the martyrdom of the faithful by those who deny and constantly deny the Gospel. It is the victory of the believer who under pressure from the unbelievers is tortured to deny the Gospel but remains steadfast unto death exiting this life victoriously gaining a martyr's crown.

"And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come. And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword."

With the opening of the second seal we see another horse and rider, and the second beast that was like a calf, again says come, come forth and be revealed on the stage. This time the colour of the horse is red: the colour of fire and blood and together with the sword are symbolic of internal and external wars. It says that the rider is come to take peace from the earth, in other words to make war, and to make people slaughter each other. Again the KJ translation does not do the original Greek justice. It says that they should kill each other, but the Greek says that they may slaughter or slay each other. Slay is a much more powerful verb than kill and shows a certain viciousness and bloodthirstiness. This viciousness is characteristic of civil wars where passions run very high and deep. There is nothing more dreadful that civil war where brother kills brother and father the son or cousins out to slay cousins. War is never pleasant and you fight to win, but what kind of victory is there in a civil war when a family fights against its own members. A civil war is many times worse than a regular war between two nations. 

Anyway what is worse here is that these wars whether they be internal or external will take place worldwide, but especially in the Christian nations. But what is the cause behind these wars, especially since the Gospel today is being taught all over the world? There should be peace and love between all nations, but the truth is that the Gospel may have been preached throughout the world, but it was rejected by the majority. So along with the spreading of the Gospel followed waves of persecution. Thus persecution is the second phase always following the teaching of the Gospel. Persecution is something that happens continually throughout history. Certainly the first three centuries of Christianity saw great and merciless persecutions, but it has never stopped. During the last century Christian Russia was persecuted with millions slaughtered for their faith, and not from a neighbouring country, but from within, a brother against a brother. Thus, whenever the white horse comes out, which we saw during the opening of the first seal, and interpreted as the constant preaching of the Gospel, the red horse will also be coming out and following the white horse as the persecution against the Gospel.

Persecution comes in many forms. Sometimes it is with bloodshed, but at other times it appears in less obvious forms, but nevertheless it is still persecution. In England, when it was still considered a Christian country, Christian religious education was an essential subject in the school curriculum. Today, so as not to offend other religions, there is no Christian R.E. but a basic introduction into all the basic religions of the world. The persecution of the Gospel was successful. In Cyprus too, the communist or left wing party has been trying to take Christianity out of our schools and replacing it with a basic knowledge of world religions. So far they have not been fully successful, but the fight still goes on. Persecution is interwoven with the spiritual life. If you want to live the spiritual life then you must accept that persecution will follow. St. Paul said: "everyone who will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution." (2 Tim. 3:12)  This is a general rule of the spiritual life. A man who appears as spiritual yet is not persecuted in not on the right path and you should doubt his spirituality except if he lives in the desert or forest all by himself, but even then he will not escape persecution, because he will be under the fierce attack of the demons which is far worse than the attacks of people.

So let's see the opening of the third seal.

"And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine."

With the opening of the third seal, a black horse with his rider appeared and the beast that had the face of a man said come, that is come forth upon the stage and been seen. The black horse symbolizes mourning, deep sadness and gloom. Why all this gloom? From the plague, the tribulation that this rider will bring upon the entire earth. The pair of balances, that is the weighing scales symbolise hunger and the lack of food, which will cause the cost of mere bread to skyrocket, the scales shows that the food will be so limited that it will be rationed.

And a voice as from among the four beasts was heard saying, a measure of wheat for a penny and three measures of barley for a penny. A measure is used to translate the Greek word χοῖνιξ which although the exact measure is not known it is believed to be about two pounds or a kilo. So for our purpose of interpreting I'll use the kilo as that is the usual measure we use in Cyprus. A Penny again is used for the Greek denarios which was a days pay. Wheat is sold for one penny a kilo, but for the same money you get three times as much barley. So in terms of quality wheat is much better and costlier than barley. Of course we must understand that these costs were for two thousand years ago, but we can calculate the equivalent cost for today because as already said, a denarios or penny was a day's wage. If we say that the average daily wage today is 100 euros, then the cost of a kilo of wheat will be 100 euro. This can give us an idea how expensive things will be price wise. However there will also be a restriction in the quantity that can be purchased and this is indicated by the scales expressing the reality of rationing.

But the hunger described by this plague will not be extremely terrible because of what was added by the voice which restricted the rider saying see that you don't hurt the oil and the wine. In other words he is not allowed to damage the production of oil and wine which are basic necessities of human nutrition. It is common knowledge that wheat or bread, oil and wine are three basic representatives of human nutrition. That is why in the service of Artoklasia, that is the blessing of the five loaves during feast days, along with the five loaves, we also have some wheat, a bottle of wine and a bottle of oil. And we ask God to bless these items so that we will always have them for our sustenance, so that they may always be plentiful in our homes. Hunger is a terrible thing and only someone who has experienced hunger can understand how terrible it can be.

Now maybe this "don't damage the oil and wine" takes place for the sake of the faithful. If you remember the talk on the Signs of the Times, there we saw the signs of the last days as mentioned in the 24th chapter of Matthew. There Christ said that "there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." and further down he says: "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time... And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened." So for the faithful's sake there is hope that the suffering will be limited.

But why does God allow these plagues to take place? They are a result of the people's apostasy from God. In Leviticus the Lord says: "If ye walk in My statutes, and keep My commandments, and do them, then I will give you the rain in due season, and the land shall yield her fruits, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit." (26:3-4) But if ye will not hearken unto Me, nor obey these Mine ordinances, (26:14) then I will afflict you with the famine of bread, then ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver again your loaves by weight (rationing): and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied." (26:26) Thus we have been forewarned.

The bread that most people throw out because it was yesterday's bread and it's gone a bit stale, will be more than the bread made from one kilo of wheat. Let's not forget that it will cost a day's wage, where will all the other things needed for our daily survival come from; there is no more money to buy anything else. This should make us think before throwing food away. Stale bread can be used to make breadcrumbs which can be used in many ways. Many of us have not lived through a war to know what rationing is like, but during World War 2 the women made sure that nothing was wasted.

Hunger hit Greece very harshly in the winter of 41/42. Bread was rationed to a loaf every five days and you had to line up all day to make sure you got a loaf before the baker's run out. People used to look in the dustbins to find potato peelings which the Germans threw out. They would take them, wash and cook them in the oven. Orange peelings which the Germans threw out were boiled to take the bitterness out and with a little sugar were made into a sweet. The bones which the Germans threw out after their barbeques were again salvaged from the rubbish. They were washed and dried in the oven to preserve them and were later added to rice and soups to give flavour and nutrition. We can't even imagine these things but the Lord says these days will come. 

"And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth."

Notice that with each seal opened we have a gradual progression of events. Firstly the Gospel is preached and all things are peaceful, after this the reaction of Satan and his instruments and they rise up in persecution and martyrdom against the preachers and carriers of the Gospel. Then God punishes the persecutors of the Gospel and he unleashes famine, mourning and misery. However, because the persecutors do not conform, but they insist in their denial, the opening of the fourth seal comes as a punishment from God.

The fourth beast is the beast that was like an eagle, and like the other three, he says come and invites the pale horse and its rider to appear on the stage and be seen. The colour of the horse is pale, in other words a yellowish colour and this is the colour of death. A yellow flag is used to show an area under quarantine and was especially used on ships to indicate the presence of disease. Also when we see someone with a yellow complexion we assume that he is ready to die. The rider of this yellow horse is named death and he is followed by Hades. Hades is personified here just as death is also personified. It is natural for Hades to follow death, but this personification communicates something very valuable to us. It reveals by this verse strong proof that after death souls continue to live. Because if souls did not live after death, why would Hades be presented here as following close behind death as the one who gathers those who have died thus making them his possession or his property. This means that souls do not die, but continue to live even after death.

And power was given unto them or more specifically authority was given unto them to gather one fourth of the earth. Who granted them this authority – Christ the Lord of life and of death, but this was not granted as a favour, but as a concession. It does not please God to give over even a single soul to death and Hades let alone a fourth of the world's population, but he allows it or rather he concedes to it in other to punish the rebellious people and he allow it to happen through the sword, in other words through wars, and with famine, with death, meaning diseases and plagues and with the beasts of the earth.

The beasts of the earth could mean many things. The animal kingdom has always existed with the human kingdom, however here the point in question is whether it means the lions and tigers and bears and snakes etc. Will they at some time abound in numbers and enter our cities and kill us? In Leviticus of the Old Testament we read: "And I will send upon you the wild beasts of the land; and they shall devour you, and consume your cattle: and I will make you few in number; and your highways shall be desolate." (Lev. 26:22) It seems though that the beasts of the earth mentioned are something far worse that our lions and tigers and bears. It could mean insects like flies and mosquitoes which can spread diseases to humans and animal and other insects that can destroy crops. We do not consider these as beast because they are small in size, but in numbers and in what they can destroy, they can truly be characterized as beasts. But there are even beasts that are much smaller than these and which the eye cannot see. These are bacteria, microbes and viruses. In our times there are such deadly bacteria that we live under the threat of bacterial warfare that can easily wipe out cities and we have also been witness to the death caused by the Aids virus, but this is just one virus there are millions of different types of viruses which can also mutate and evolve. There are therefore many beasts ready and waiting to be unleashed on mankind.

This is all we have time for today, next week we will continue with the remaining three seals.