Revelation 6:4 - Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown

Revelation 6:4

2 And I looked, and behold, ^aa white horse. ^bHe who sat on it had a bow; ^cand a crown was given to him, and he went out ^dconquering and to conquer.

Second Seal: Conflict on Earth

3 When He opened the second seal, ^aI heard the second living creature saying, “Come¹ and see.”

4 ^aAnother horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to ^btake peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.

Third Seal: Scarcity on Earth

5 When He opened the third seal, ^aI heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, ^ba black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of ^cscales in his hand.

6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A¹ quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and ^ado not harm the oil and the wine.”

Fourth Seal: Widespread Death on Earth

7 When He opened the fourth seal, ^aI heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come and see.”

8 ^aSo I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, ^bto kill with sword, with hunger, with death, ^cand by the beasts of the earth.

Fifth Seal: The Cry of the Martyrs

9 When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under ^athe altar ^bthe souls of those who had been slain ^cfor the word of God and for ^dthe testimony which they held.

10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ^a“How long, O Lord, ^bholy and true, ^cuntil You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”

11 Then a ^awhite robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them ^bthat they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.

Sixth Seal: Cosmic Disturbances

12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, ^aand behold, there was a great earthquake; and ^bthe sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the² moon became like blood.

13 ^aAnd the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.

14 ^aThen the sky¹ receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and ^bevery mountain and island was moved out of its place.

15 And the ^akings of the earth, the great men,¹ the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, ^bhid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains,

16 ^aand said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who ^bsits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!

17 For the great day of His wrath has come, ^aand who is able to stand?”

Commentaries:

Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown

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Revelation 6:4

red—the color of blood. The color of the horse in each case answers to the mission of the rider. Compare Matthew 10:24-36, "Think not I am come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword." The white horse of Christ's bloodless victories is soon followed, through man's perversion of the Gospel, by the red horse of bloodshed; but this is overruled to the clearing away of the obstacles to Christ's coming kingdom. The patient ox is the emblem of the second living creature who, at the opening of this seal, saith, "Come." The saints amidst judgments on the earth in patience "endure to the end."

that they should kill—The Greek is indicative future, "that they may, as they also shall, kill one another."

Other Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown entries containing Revelation 6:4:

Zechariah 1:8
2 Corinthians 11:20
Revelation 6:12

<< Revelation 6:3

Revelation 6:5 >>

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