E. The Third Seal (6:5-6)
E. THE THIRD SEAL (6:5-6)
5. The same formula as before leads to a summons by the third living one to the third horseman. This time John sees a black horse (cf. Zc. 6:2,6), which symbolizes famine. The rider carried a pair of scales, unusual equipment for a horseman. It probably refers to the weighing of bread in a famine (grain would be measured by volume). Ezekiel speaks of eating food ‘by weight’ (Ezk. 4:9-10), and again the Lord says, ’when I cut off your supply of bread . . . they will dole out the bread by weight’ (Lv. 26:26).
6. John heard not ‘a voice’ but ’as a voice’, where we see his characteristic reserve once more. He does not say who spoke, but as the sound came from the middle of the four living ones, it must be a divine Person. Quart translates choinix, a measure of about a litre (1½ to 2 pints). Charles cites Herodotus and others to show that a choinix of wheat was the daily ration for a man. At this price the full day’s wage would be spent on one day’s ration. A labourer would buy barley rather than wheat and thus would have a little for his dependants. John is describing a famine price but not a starvation price.
‘Hurt’ (adik
ss) is a curious verb to use of the oil and the wine. The meaning appears to be that there will be abundance of oil and wine coupled with scarcity of bread. This may be because the roots of the olive and the vine go deeper than those of grain crops so that they would not be so easily damaged in a difficult year. Or it may mean that the necessities of life for the poor will be in short supply while the luxuries of the rich will not cease. Charles tells of a time when Domitian, in an effort to stimulate the growing of cereals, ordered that no new vineyards be planted in Italy and that half the vineyards in the provinces be destroyed. There was such an outcry that the edict was repealed. John may have such a situation in mind. Or there may be a reference to the Old Testament linking of corn, oil, and wine as man’s basic needs. When one of these is harmed and the others not, there is a partial provision at any rate. All this adds up to a famine which is not yet a disaster. It is in the nature of a warning. Things are difficult but the end is not yet.
ss) is a curious verb to use of the oil and the wine. The meaning appears to be that there will be abundance of oil and wine coupled with scarcity of bread. This may be because the roots of the olive and the vine go deeper than those of grain crops so that they would not be so easily damaged in a difficult year. Or it may mean that the necessities of life for the poor will be in short supply while the luxuries of the rich will not cease. Charles tells of a time when Domitian, in an effort to stimulate the growing of cereals, ordered that no new vineyards be planted in Italy and that half the vineyards in the provinces be destroyed. There was such an outcry that the edict was repealed. John may have such a situation in mind. Or there may be a reference to the Old Testament linking of corn, oil, and wine as man’s basic needs. When one of these is harmed and the others not, there is a partial provision at any rate. All this adds up to a famine which is not yet a disaster. It is in the nature of a warning. Things are difficult but the end is not yet.