The Number Four in the Apocalypse

While doing research on “The Four Horsemen” of the Apocalypse in Wickipedia, I noticed that the various interpretations offered were frequently based on ad hominem arguments.
This is especially true in the case of the Four Horsemen, where the interpretative key, the number 4, if often overlooked. Let me offer a few instances to make my point.
The Number Four in the Bible
From the first chapters of Genesis to the last chapters of Revelation we find the number 4 used symbolically. Like the other Archetypal numbers, it is used subtly and discretely by the biblical writers. We find it used most frequently exactly where we would expect it, however, a fact that confirms the symbolic awareness of the biblical authors. I refer, of course, to the sacred buildings of the Old Testament. The number is used 30 times in Exodus 25-26 to describe the construction of the Tabernacle and its furniture. Let me illustrate. The Ark of the Covenant had 4 gold rings, one on each corner, and 2 on each side. The Mercy Seat, which covered the Ark, was 2½ cubits long and 1½ cubits wide, or an area of exactly 4 cubits. The Table of showbread also had 4 gold rings, one on each corner, and the Golden Lampstand was ornamented with 4 bowls.
“And in the lampstand shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knobs and their flowers.”
The Tabernacle was surrounded with 10 curtains of linen 28 cubits long and 4 cubits wide. Each curtain had an area of 112 cubits, or 4 x 28, and the total area of all the curtains was 1120 cubits, or 4 x 280. These curtains, in turn, were covered by 11 curtains of goat hair 30 cubits long and 4 cubits wide. Each curtain had an area of 120 cubits, or 4 x 30, and the total area of all 11 curtains was 1320 cubits, or 4 x 330. The boards and sockets of the Tabernacle were also based on the number Four. These boards, made of acacia wood, were 10 cubits long and a 1½ cubits wide, or 15 square cubits. Each board had 2 sockets made of silver, “two sockets under one board for its two tenons, and two sockets under another board for its two tenons.” There were 20 boards on the south side, 20 boards on the north side, and 6 boards on the west side, plus 2 boards for the corners. This makes a total of 48 boards and 96 sockets . The total area of all the boards is 720 cubits or 4 x 180.
The inner veil was hung on four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold, and both the inner veil and the outer veil were embroidered in 4 colors - blue, purple, scarlet, and linen. The brazen altar was foursquare, 5 cubits long and five cubits wide, and had 4 horns on each corner. Its grate had four bronze rings in the 4 corners thereof. The Gate of the Court had 4 pillars and 4 sockets, and the Breastplate of the High Priest had 4 rows of precious stones. I would point out that there are other numbers incorporated into the dimensions of the Tabernacle, but that is grist for another mill. Before leaving the subject of number in the sacred buildings of the Old Testament, we should mention that in the short description of Solomon’s Temple the number 4 is used 10 times, and that Ezekiel’s Temple of the future incorporates the number 24 times. The prolific use of the number 4 in this manner clearly indicates that the builders of these sacred edifices understood its symbolic meaning.
Other indications of the use of this symbolism by the Biblical writers is found in David’s “mighty men,” who numbered 400 and who are mention 4 times in I Samuel. . The number also appears in the highly symbolic contest between Elijah and the “prophets of the idols, 400, who eat at Jezebel’s table.” This symbolism is enhanced greatly by the actions of Elijah, who used 12 stones and 4 barrels of water to bring about the defeat of the prophets of Baal.
“And he took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob….and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord; and he made a trench about the altar….and he put wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood. And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time, And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time…. Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice….”
Isaiah speaks of the 4 corners of the earth, and Jeremiah of the 4 winds from the 4 corners of the earth. Ezekiel mentions the 4 corners of the land, the 4 sore judgments, and the 4 winds. Daniel refers to the 4 winds of heaven 3 times in his prophecy, and his description of 4 great beasts is the basis of much of what is later revealed in the Apocalypse.
“Daniel spoke and said, I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea….”
Zechariah, one of the last Prophets in the Old Testament, mentions the 4 winds, the 4 horns, the 4 carpenters, the 4 chariots, and the 4 Spirits of Heaven, and Mark, the first New Testament Evangelist, mentions these same “four winds” in his vivid account of the return of Christ.
“And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.”
Finally, I would point out that there are exactly Four Gospels, and that they have been taken as a symbol for the Four Creative Agents from the earliest times. Irenaeus (120-202 CE), perhaps the most important of the apologetic Fathers, took the Four Gospels to symbolize the Four Living Creatures, the Four Winds, and the Four Quarters of the earth.
"For, since there are four zones of the world in which we live, and four principle winds, while the Church is scattered throughout all the world, and the ‘pillar and ground’ of the Church is the Gospel and the spirit of life; it is fitting that she should have four pillars, breathing out immortality on every side.” Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book 3, 11:8
Victorinus, who flourished a hundred years after Irenaeus, associated the Four Gospels with the Four Elements, the Four Seasons, the Four Living Creatures, and the Four Rivers of Paradise. This interpretation is widely held today, although most modern interpreters are unfamiliar with the numerological basis upon which the concept is based.
The Number Four in the Apocalypse
The number Four appears 28 times in the Revelation, where its symbolic meaning is always in harmony with the ideas presented earlier. Almost everyone is familiar with the ferocious Four Horsemen, whose devastating ride is described in the first Four Seals. One of the clearest correlations between the Apocalypse and use of the number 4 in the ancient world is found in the prolog to the sealing of the 144,000.
“And after these things I saw I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the winds should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.”
We are told that the golden altar that stands before God has 4 horns, and that the sounding of the Sixth Trumpet heralds the release of the Four Angels, “who are bound in the great river Euphrates.” The final deceptive act of Satan shall be to draw the nations of the world from the “four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle…”
The number is also in a “hidden” or “mystical” manner by the Prophet John throughout the Book. There are, for instance, “Four Openings” in the Apocalypse. The first is a door that “opened in Heaven”, and through which the Prophet beheld the Great Throne Visions. The second opening occurs at the close of the first half of the Apocalypse.
“And the temple of God opened in Heaven, and there was seen in His Temple the Ark of His testament. And there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.”
The third “opening” transpires at the beginning of the final Seven Plagues. Just before the Seven Angels leave the Temple to fulfill their mission of judgment, “The Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony in Heaven was opened.”
The fourth “opening” is that described in the vision of the return of Christ, which is quite different from those previously mentioned. It is the most dramatic of the four, because the whole of Heaven seems to open in order that all may see the triumphant descent of Messiah.
“It is no mere door but Heaven itself which stands wide open.”
G.R. Beasley-Murray; “The Apocalypse of John, p. 279.
In the same vision mentioned above, the Rider on the White Horse and his actions are set forth in groups of four.
Messiah’s Four Items of Adornment

His Vesture
His Crowns
His Sword
His Rod
The Four Body Parts of Messiah

His Eyes
His Head
His Mouth
His Thigh
The Four Actions of Messiah

Judgment of the Nations
War Against the Nations
Conquest of the Nations
Destruction of the Nations
The Four Enemies of Messiah

The Beast
The False Prophet
The Kings of the Earth
The Armies of the Earth
There are many such examples in the Apocalypse, where the number 4 is either found in the subtext or in combination with the number Three.

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