“I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand.” (Revelation 6:5-6, NASB)

According to the vision given to John in Revelation, it seems our future is dark, bleak, and grim. Of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, the first two bring forth a false messiah and false peace in the world. In today’s reading, the third horseman brings forth a dark time that the world has never seen before. It appears that extreme famine and hunger are inevitable in the future. As John saw the Lamb break open the third seal of the book of judgment, he saw a third horseman riding on a black horse emerge. He writes,

“And when He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, ‘Come.’ And I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard as it were a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, ‘A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.’”

To me, this black horse speaks of the lifelessness of things, and everywhere it treads, it will cause famine and drought on earth. The rider of this horse carried “a pair of scale in his hand” which implies that he had the authority and power to manipulate the supply and demand of things, namely food and water supplies. There will be a great famine in the future, causing food and water shortages, hunger, and scarcity of other essentials. Famine is the inevitable outcome of war and bloodshed brought on earth by the second horseman on a red horse.

The phrase “a quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius” speaks of a food shortage crisis where people will be buying a day’s worth of food for an entire day’s paycheck. “Denarius” refers to the silver coin during the Roman Empire, which amounted to a day’s wage. Therefore, if a person is only able to buy a quart of wheat or three quarts of barley with his entire day’s wage, can you try to imagine what the state of the economy might look like all over the world during the Tribulation Period? In other words, if you have a job, then you will be able to eat for a day or two, but if you were unemployed, then you would be homeless, hungry, and starving. Famine, food shortage, and hunger are not new.

We have had times like these throughout human history, and we are experiencing some of them right now. If the human population continues to grow while our essential supplies are limited, it is inevitable that people will hoard, price hike, and even resort to theft and violence. However, this future calamity caused by the rider on a black horse will be a direct result of God’s judgment, implying that this famine will be supernatural in nature. Never have we experienced such famine, and never will we experience it afterward. This will be a one-of-a-kind famine on earth. What do people do when they are in short supply? What do people do when they are hungry and starving? We are simply left to our imagination as to what people will do to cope with such calamity during the Tribulation Period. And even then, there is no indication that people will repent and return to God for deliverance!

Our future seems dark, but not for long. There is evidence of God’s mercy in judgment. It says that a “voice in the center of the four living creatures” finished his words by saying, “Do not harm the oil and the wine.” The rider of the black horse was given authority and power, but not fully. The “voice” obviously is that of God, and He has put a limit to what the third rider can and cannot do. This is the mercy of God. The same thing happened when Satan was given power to hurt Job. Job 1:12 says, “Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.’ So Satan departed from the presence of the LORD.” Likewise, God will give the enemy authority and power, but it has limitations. Our world is getting darker by the minute, but it is being restrained by the presence of the Church on earth, the living temple of the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, when the Lord Jesus returns, the reign of darkness will come to an end, and God promises a future kingdom ruled by the eternal Light of the world. Our future seems dark, but not for long.

• What do you think the black horse and its rider represent?
• What does it mean for the Church to be salt and light in the world that is becoming darker?