6 Then I saw as the Lamb broke open one of the seven seals, and as if in a voice of thunder I heard one of the four living creatures call out, Come!
2 And I looked, and saw there a white horse whose rider carried a bow. And a crown was given him, and he rode forth conquering and to conquer.(A)
3 And when He broke the second seal, I heard the second living creature call out, Come!
4 And another horse came out, flaming red. And its rider was empowered to take the peace from the earth, so that men slaughtered one another; and he was given a huge sword.
5 When He broke open the third seal, I heard the third living creature call out, Come and look! And I saw, and behold, a black horse, and in his hand the rider had a pair of scales (a balance).
6 And I heard what seemed to be a voice from the midst of the four living creatures, saying, A quart of wheat for a denarius [a whole day’s wages], and three quarts of barley for a denarius; but do not harm the oil and the wine!(B)
7 When the Lamb broke open the fourth seal, I heard the fourth living creature call out, Come!
8 So I looked, and behold, an ashy pale horse [[a]black and blue as if made so by bruising], and its rider’s name was Death, and Hades (the realm of the dead) followed him closely. And they were given authority and power over a fourth part of the earth to kill with the sword and with famine and with plague (pestilence, disease) and with wild beasts of the earth.(C)
9 When the Lamb broke open the fifth seal, I saw at the foot of the altar the souls of those whose lives had been sacrificed for [adhering to] the Word of God and for the testimony they had borne.
10 They cried in a loud voice, O [Sovereign] Lord, holy and true, how long now before You will sit in judgment and avenge our blood upon those who dwell on the earth?(D)
11 Then they were each given a [b]long and flowing and festive white robe and told to rest and wait patiently a little while longer, until the number should be complete of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed as they themselves had been.
12 When He [the Lamb] broke open the sixth seal, I looked, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun grew black as sackcloth of hair, [the full disc of] the moon became like blood.(E)
13 And the stars of the sky dropped to the earth like a fig tree shedding its unripe fruit out of season when shaken by a strong wind.(F)
14 And the [c]sky rolled up like a scroll and vanished, and every mountain and island was dislodged from its place.
15 Then the kings of the earth and their noblemen and their magnates and their military chiefs and the wealthy and the strong and [everyone, whether] slave or free hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains,(G)
16 And they called to the mountains and the rocks, Fall on (before) us and hide us from the face of Him Who sits on the throne and from the [d]deep-seated indignation and wrath of the Lamb.(H)
17 For the great day of His wrath (vengeance, retribution, indignation) has come, and who is able to stand before it?(I)
Footnotes
- Revelation 6:8 A description of the livid, ashen, discolored appearance of the dead; it symbolizes death and pestilence.
- Revelation 6:11 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Revelation 6:14 James Moulton and George Milligan, The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament.
- Revelation 6:16 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
Cross references
- Revelation 6:2 : Ps. 45:4, 5; Zech. 1:8; 6:1-3.
- Revelation 6:6 : II Kings 6:25.
- Revelation 6:8 : Ezek. 5:12; Hos. 13:14.
- Revelation 6:10 : Gen. 4:10; Ps. 79:5; Zech. 1:12.
- Revelation 6:12 : Joel 2:10, 31.
- Revelation 6:13 : Isa. 34:4.
- Revelation 6:15 : Isa. 2:10.
- Revelation 6:16 : Isa. 2:19-21; Hos. 10:8.
- Revelation 6:17 : Joel 2:11; Mal. 3:2.