1917_The_Finished_Mystery_Text

Revelation 6:7And when He had opened the fourth seal.—Disclosing the history of the Papacy in its fourthstage, the period synchronizing with the Thyatiraand Sardis epochs. See Rev. 2:18-29; 3:1-6.I heard the voice of the fourth beast.— InfiniteWisdom.Say, Come and see.— Come and see whatwould seem to be the most unwise thing the Lordcould possibly permit to happen to His Church.Revelation 6:8And I looked, and behold a pale horse.— Theghastly and horrible teachings that God's truepeople must be "exterminated." "The ghastlygreen of terror and of death. The word is used ofgrass in Rev. 8:7; 9:4; Mark 6:39."— Cook.And his name that sat on him was Death.—Still the same rider, the Papacy; and an aptdescription of its chief claim to recognitionduring the pre-Reformation period."Pope Innocent III, first sent missionaries to thedistricts in which the doctrines had gainedfoothold, to preach Romanism, work miracles,etc.; but, finding these efforts unavailing, heproclaimed a crusade against them and offered toall who would engage in it the pardon of all sinsand an immediate passport to Heaven withoutpassing through purgatory. With full faith in thepope's power to bestow the promised rewards,half a million men—French, German andItalian— rallied around the standard of the cross,for the defense of Catholicism and the extinctionof heresy. Then followed a series of battles andsieges covering a space of twenty years. The cityof Beziers was stormed and taken in 1209, andthe citizens, without regard for age or sex,perished by the sword to the number of sixtythousand, as reported by several historians. Theblood of those who fled to churches, andFM115were murdered there by the holy crusaders,drenched the altars and flowed through thestreets. It is estimated that one hundred thousand