Revelation 6:3-8

6:3 Then ¹  when the Lamb ²  opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come!” 6:4 And another horse, fiery red, ³  came out, and the one who rode it ⁴  was granted permission ⁵  to take peace from the earth, so that people would butcher ⁶  one another, and he was given a huge sword.

6:5 Then ⁷  when the Lamb opened the third seal I heard the third living creature saying, “Come!” So ⁸  I looked, ⁹  and here came ¹⁰  a black horse! The ¹¹  one who rode it ¹²  had a balance scale ¹³  in his hand. 6:6 Then ¹⁴  I heard something like a voice from among the four living creatures saying, “A quart ¹⁵  of wheat will cost a day’s pay ¹⁶  and three quarts of barley will cost a day’s pay. But ¹⁷  do not damage the olive oil and the wine!”

6:7 Then ¹⁸  when the Lamb opened the fourth seal I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come!” 6:8 So ¹⁹  I looked ²⁰  and here came ²¹  a pale green ²²  horse! The ²³  name of the one who rode it ²⁴  was Death, and Hades followed right behind. ²⁵  They ²⁶  were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill its population with the sword, ²⁷  famine, and disease, ²⁸  and by the wild animals of the earth.

[6:3]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[6:3]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (the Lamb) has been specified in the translation for clarity here and throughout the rest of the chapter.

[6:4]  ³ tn L&N 79.31 states, “‘fiery red’ (probably with a tinge of yellow or orange).”

[6:4]  ⁴ tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”

[6:4]  ⁵ tn The word “permission” is implied; Grk “it was given to him to take peace from the earth.”

[6:4]  ⁶ tn BDAG 979 s.v. σφάζω states, “Of the killing of a person by violence…σφάζειν τινά butcher or murder someone (4 Km 10:7; Jer 52:10; Manetho: 609 fgm. 8, 76 Jac. [in Jos., C. Ap. 1, 76]; Demetr.[?]: 722 fgm. 7; Ar. 10, 9) 1J 3:12; Rv 6:4. Pass. (Hdt. 5, 5) 5:9; 6:9; 18:24.”

[6:5]  ⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[6:5]  ⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the summons by the third creature.

[6:5]  ⁹ tc The reading “and I looked” (καὶ εἶδον, kai eidon) or some slight variation (e.g., ἶδον, idon) has excellent ms support ({א A C P 1611}) and its omission seems to have come through the mss that have already placed “and look” (καὶ ἴδε or καὶ βλέπε [kai ide or kai blepe]) after the verb “come” (ἔρχου, ercou) in 6:1. Thus, for these copyists it was redundant to add “and I looked” again.

[6:5]  ¹⁰ tn The phrase “and here came” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).

[6:5]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:5]  ¹² tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”

[6:5]  ¹³ sn A balance scale would have been a rod held by a rope in the middle with pans attached to both ends for measuring.

[6:6]  ¹⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[6:6]  ¹⁵ tn BDAG 1086 s.v. χοῖνιξ states, “a dry measure, oft. used for grain, approximately equivalent to one quart or one liter, quart. A χ.of grain was a daily ration for one pers.…Rv 6:6ab.”

[6:6]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “a quart of wheat for a denarius.” A denarius was one day’s pay for an average worker. The words “will cost” are used to indicate the genitive of price or value; otherwise the English reader could understand the phrase to mean “a quart of wheat to be given as a day’s pay.”

[6:6]  ¹⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[6:7]  ¹⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[6:8]  ¹⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the summons by the fourth creature.

[6:8]  ²⁰ tc The reading “and I looked” (καὶ εἶδον, kai eidon) or some slight variation (e.g., ἶδον, idon) has excellent ms support ({א A C P 1611}) and its omission seems to have come through the mss that have already placed “and look” (καὶ ἴδε or καὶ βλέπε [kai ide or kai blepe]) after the verb “come” (ἔρχου, ercou) in 6:1. Thus, for these copyists it was redundant to add “and I looked” again.

[6:8]  ²¹ tn The phrase “and here came” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).

[6:8]  ²² tn A sickly pallor, when referring to persons, or the green color of plants. BDAG 1085 s.v. χλωρός 2 states, “pale, greenish gray…as the color of a pers. in sickness contrasted with appearance in health…so the horse ridden by Death…ἵππος χλωρός Rv 6:8.” Because the color of the horse is symbolic, “pale green” is used in the translation. Cf. NIV, NCV “pale”; NASB “ashen.”

[6:8]  ²³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:8]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”

[6:8]  ²⁵ tn Grk “And Hades was following with him.” The Greek expression μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ (met’ autou, “with him”) is Semitic and indicates close proximity. The translation “followed right behind” reflects this.

[6:8]  ²⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[6:8]  ²⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:8]  ²⁸ tn Grk “with death.” θάνατος (qanatos) can in particular contexts refer to a manner of death, specifically a contagious disease (see BDAG 443 s.v. 3; L&N 23.158).