Revelation 6:7-8

6:7 Then ¹  when the Lamb opened the fourth seal I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come!” 6:8 So ²  I looked ³  and here came ⁴  a pale green ⁵  horse! The ⁶  name of the one who rode it ⁷  was Death, and Hades followed right behind. ⁸  They ⁹  were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill its population with the sword, ¹⁰  famine, and disease, ¹¹  and by the wild animals of the earth.

[6:7]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[6:8]  ² tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the summons by the fourth creature.

[6:8]  ³ 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]  ⁴ tn The phrase “and here came” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).

[6:8]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:8]  ⁷ tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”

[6:8]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ 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]  ¹⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:8]  ¹¹ 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).