Revelation6:8

Translation

I paid careful attention and behold,

another horse

that went forth;

this one was a pale, yellowish green;

The one sitting on it had the name Death,

and HADES followed close behind him.

Authority over one quarter of the earth

was given to the horse

and the rider

to kill by the sword,

famine, death,

and by the wild animals

of the earth.

Paraphrase

I paid careful attention and

you should have seen it, another personification of unlimited swiftness and power that went forth; this one had the power to produce piles of dead and rotting bodies;

the one accompanying it had the reputation of Death, and THE PLACE OF THE DEAD followed

close behind him. Authority over one quarter of the earth was given to the personification of swiftness and power and the one accompanying it to kill by means of warfare, famine, multiple forms of death in general, and by the wild animals

of the earth.

Footnotes

1

Literally “Pale green, or yellowish green.” Healthy flesh is red in color because of blood, and we know that “the life of the body is in the blood.” However, in a corpse, once the process of decaying begins, the tissues lose the red color and other colors become visible. The decaying process does not always produce green looking flesh, but if you do see greenish flesh you know it is not healthy, living flesh. Thus pale, yellowish-green flesh means rotting flesh.

2

Death needs no symbolism. It is impossible to think of a symbol that is more powerful than the word death; it stands on its own and creates many mental images without the help of symbolism.

3: Why is death one of the demonstrations of the power of Jesus?

For the rebellious and unfaithful, death is exactly how the power of Jesus will be known. In the end, the point is that Jesus, the Lamb, who is also the Lion, has all the power and those who disobey Him will suffer death and go to Hades, the place of the dead. This was a harsh warning; but as long as it was still a warning and not the time for punishment itself, this was actually an act of mercy and grace.

4

Fractions are used often in Revelation and are a sign that something is limited or cut short. Here it represents God’s mercy in not destroying everyone all at once. Obviously, Jesus already has authority over everything. This was not yet the time for full punishment and destruction; this was a limited destruction designed to wake up those who are left alive and give them another chance to repent.