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About this book

Revelation

About this book
Chapter 6

1 I looked on when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a thunderous voice, “Come!” 2 So I looked, and here came a white horse!⁠ The one who rode it had a bow, and he was given a crown, and as a conqueror he rode out to conquer. 3 Then when the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come!” 4 And another horse, fiery red, came out, and the one who rode it was granted permission to take peace from the earth so that people would butcher one another, and he was given a huge sword. 5 Then when the Lamb opened the third seal I heard the third living creature saying, “Come!” So I looked, and here came a black horse! The one who rode it had a balance scale in his hand. 6 Then I heard something like a voice from among the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat will cost a day’s pay, and three quarts of barley will cost a day’s pay. But do not damage the olive oil and the wine!” 7 Then when the Lamb opened the fourth seal I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come!” 8 So I looked and here came a pale green horse! The name of the one who rode it was Death, and Hades followed right behind.⁠ They were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill its population with the sword, famine, and disease, and by the wild animals of the earth.⁠ 9 Now when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been violently killed⁠ because of the word of God and because of the testimony they had given.⁠ 10 They cried out with a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Master, holy and true, before you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?”⁠ 11 Each of them was given a long white robe,⁠ and they were told to rest for a little longer, until the full number was reached of both their fellow servants and their brothers who were going to be killed just as they had been.⁠ 12 Then I looked when the Lamb opened the sixth seal, and a huge earthquake took place; the sun became as black as sackcloth made of hair, and the full moon became blood red;⁠ 13 and the stars in the sky fell to the earth like a fig tree dropping its unripe figs when shaken by a fierce wind.⁠ 14 The sky was split apart like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved from its place. 15 Then the kings of the earth, the very important people, the generals, the rich, the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.⁠ 16 They said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the one who is seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb,⁠ 17 because the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to withstand it?”

Texts in conversation

Compare Deuteronomy 28:26 and Revelation 6:8

Hebrew Bible · New Testament

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Summary

Revelation draws on Deuteronomy’s language of famine, disease, and death to describe its vision of judgment. The same images of hunger and desolation that were used as covenant curses now describe judgment at the end of the age.

Passages

Deuteronomy 28:26

Hebrew Bible
24 The Lord will make the rain of your land powder and dust; it will come down on you from the sky until you are destroyed. 25 “The Lord will allow you to be struck down before your enemies; you will attack them from one direction but flee from them in seven directions and will become an object of terror to all the kingdoms of the earth. 26 Your carcasses will be food for every bird of the sky and wild animal of the earth, and there will be no one to chase them off. 27 The Lord will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, eczema, and scabies, all of which cannot be healed. 28 The Lord will also subject you to madness, blindness, and confusion of mind.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Deuteronomy

Revelation 6:8

New Testament
6 Then I heard something like a voice from among the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat will cost a day’s pay, and three quarts of barley will cost a day’s pay. But do not damage the olive oil and the wine!” 7 Then when the Lamb opened the fourth seal I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come!” 8 So I looked and here came a pale green horse! The name of the one who rode it was Death, and Hades followed right behind. They were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill its population with the sword, famine, and disease, and by the wild animals of the earth. 9 Now when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been violently killed because of the word of God and because of the testimony they had given. 10 They cried out with a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Master, holy and true, before you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?”
92–96 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Revelation

References

"... Revelation 6:8 and 18:8 utilize the noun “hunger, famine,” that is an important part of destruction prophecies, the first one being part of the fourth seal and the second one pronouncing the fall of Babylon. In Old Testament literature, hunger is often connected to curses or agents of punishment (Deuteronomy 28:48; Isaiah 29:8; Lamentations 2:19). On the other end of the spectrum, God is the one who gives bread from heaven and thus alleviates hunger (Exodus 16:1–36; Nehemiah 9:15; John 6:31, 49, 58). Up to now, the focus of the discussion of meal/eating metaphors has been on the “eating” aspect. However, drinking is also part of the meal metaphor. The verb “drink,” appears three times in the book (Revelation 14:10; 16:6; 18:3) and is always connected with judgment images. This kind of drinking is not refreshing, but rather depressing ..."
Fernando Canale, “The Quest for the Biblical Ontological Ground of Christian Theology,” JATS 16.1–2 (2005): 1–20.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Deuteronomy 28:26 and Revelation 6:8

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