The White Horse

Et vidi coelum apertum, et ecce equus albus... Dominus qui est via, veritas et vita, et cui per prophetam dicitur: Quoniam fecisti mirabilia, cogitationes antiquas fideles, amen: ad debellandas aereas potestates candidi corporis, id est, immaculati conscendit sedem. Et in justitia judicat et pugnat. Judicat ut rex saeculorum. Pugnat, quia in suis membris semper compassus dimicat. Oculi autem ejus sicut flamma ignis. Oculos Dei aliquando praecepta dicit, aliquando spiritum. Lucerna, inquit, pedibus meis verbum tuum, Domine. Et de Spiritu: Ignem veni mittere in terram. Et in capite ejus diademata multa. In quo faciemus virtutem, in ipso multitudo sanctorum coronatum dicitur habere decorem. Habens nomen scriptum quod nemo novit nisi ipse. Nisi ipse, ait, quia in illo est omnis Ecclesia. Verbi enim Dei perfecta cognitio illis manifestatur, qui corpus Christi et membra esse meruerunt. Eodem modo et Dominus ait: Nemo ascendit in coelum, nisi qui de coelo descendit, Filius hominis qui est in coelo. Et vestitus erat veste aspersa sanguine. Vestis Christi pro locis intelligi debet. Hic ergo videtur ipsum opus indicare passionis, ut in equo albo nativitas incorrupta, in veste sanguinolenta mors innoxia, designetur. Et vocabatur nomen ejus Verbum Dei. Quia idem qui homo passurus ad tempus apparuit, in principio Deus apud Deum erat. Verbum enim dicitur, quia nihil in substantia naturae ejus visibile vel corporeum est, vel quia per eum omnia condidit Pater. Cujus ad integrum notitia naturae sibi tantum, ut superius ait, et Patri cognita est. Pax enim Dei exsuperat omnem sensum, id est, ea pax qua Deus ipse sibi pacatus est omnem creaturae, sive humanae, sive etiam angelicae, transcendit intellectum. Sapientiae enim ejus non est numerus. Nam quod dicitur: Et cui voluerit Filius revelare, id est, Filium et Patrem novit, ad modum creaturae respicit. Sanctus Beda, Explanatio Apocalyspsis, Liber III, Caput XIX Source: Migne PL 93.189a-d

And I saw heaven opened, and, behold, a white horse... 1 The Lord who is the way and the truth and the life, even Him whom through the prophet it is said, 'Because you have done wonderful things, your faithful thoughts of old,' for the vanquishing of the powers of the air with the bright body, that is, He mounts the seat immaculate. 2 And in righteousness He shall judge and fight... He judges as the king of the ages. He fights because He contends in the suffering of His members. His eyes as flame... The eyes of God are sometimes the commandments, and sometimes the Spirit. 'Your word is a lamp for my feet, O Lord.' And concerning the Spirit, 'I have come to place fire on the earth.' 3 And on His head many crowns. In that we act virtuously, we shall be adorned with the many crowns of the saints. Having a name written that no one knows but Himself. But Himself, it says, because in Him is all the Church, and the flawless knowledge of the Word of God is manifested to those who have merited to be the body and members of Christ. In the same way the Lord says, 'No one ascends to heaven unless He who comes down from from heaven, the Son of Man who is in heaven.' 4 And He was clothed with a garment speckled with blood. The garment of Christ should be understood by other passages. Therefore here it seems to signify the work of the passion, so that the white horse is the incorruption of the Nativity and and blood stained garment is the guiltless death. And His name was called the Word of God. Because He who appeared for a time as a suffering man was God with God in the beginning. 'The Word' because nothing in the substance of His nature is visible and corporeal, or because through Him the Father made all things. 5 And the perfection of His nature is known by Him alone, as said above, and by the Father. For the peace of God exceeds all understanding, that is, that peace which God Himself is, which transcends the understanding of every creature, whether human or angelic. 'For His wisdom is without number.' 6 And it is said, 'And to whom the Son shall choose to reveal it,' 7 that is, according to the manner of the creature is the knowledge of the Son and the Father. Saint Bede, Commentary On The Apocalypse, Book 3, Chapter 19 1 Apoc 6.2 2 Jn 14.6, Isaiah 25.1, Ephes 2.2 3 Ps 118.105, Lk 12.49 4 Jn 3.13 5 Jn 1.1-3 6 Phil 4.7, Ps 146.5 7 Mt 11.27