What’s the Meaning of the Pale Horse of Revelation?
Bible Study Guide
(Verses 7-8) I can’t imagine what a rider named Death and another named Hades must’ve looked like. But when Jesus broke the fourth seal and the vision of the two riders on the pale horse came into view, it must not have been a pleasant site by any account.
If the horror of one rider wasn’t enough, John watches two gallop onto the scene. We all thought that there were a lot of people that died during the Covid pandemic. These two ominous figures are about to make the Covid deaths a drop in the bucket.
The rider named Death will come to consume the body while Hades will consume the soul. According to what John records, these riders of the pale horse of Revelation will be very busy.
Death will be one of the themes of God’s wrath during the seven year tribulation as we begin to see here in these verses. Hades also will be very busy but we’ll learn, he’ll will be less busy then the rider name Death. Why is that?
First, let’s remember that those who are left behind on earth are the ones that have chosen to reject God and His gift of salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ. These are the ones who’ll give up their soul to Hades. Things will not be pleasant for them to say the least.
Many Will Die, Some Will Be Saved after 4th Seal is Broken
The rider named Hades will not capture every soul from every body that Death will consume. As we’re about to learn in the upcoming seal judgments, the tribulation period will still be a time where people on earth will be able to give their life to Christ. Unfortunately, they’re going to do it in the midst of His wrath upon the earth. Thus, His wrath will consume many of them but their souls will be saved.
That’s right! If you’re still alive going into the Tribulation period, there’s still a chance to give yourself to Christ. But this is not a recommended path to take. If you’re unsure, this is the time to give your life to Christ. It’s time to repent of your sins, acknowledge you’re a sinner and ask for forgiveness. Then put all of your trust and faith in Christ and you will be saved.
The Pale Horse of Revelation Ushers in Unprecedented Death
Look carefully at the last sentence of verse 8.
“They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.” (Revelation 6:8)
According to several websites that track the current global population, they all come in around 8.2 billion. Let’s make this easy math and round it down to 8 billion people on the planet.
The pale horse of Revelation is going to represent the death of a quarter of that population. This means that the events that will take place upon the earth at the beginning of God’s wrath, also known as the Tribulation Period will cause 2 billion people to perish.
“I will punish the world for its evil,
the wicked for their sins.
I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty
and will humble the pride of the ruthless.
12 I will make people scarcer than pure gold,
more rare than the gold of Ophir.”
(Isaiah 13:11-12)
According to the World Health Organization, 14.9 million people died during the Covid pandemic. This pales in comparison to what will occur at the beginning of the wrath upon the earth. Keep in mind, this is only the beginning. Remember, the judgments, as they unfold intensify greatly upon the inhabitants of the earth.
All deaths across history that have taken mankind due to war, plagues, pestilence and famine will pale in comparison to what these riders of the pale horse of Revelation have planned.
Do you suppose this is the reason God chose the color pale for this horse? We really don’t know because it’s not revealed to us through the Bible. It’s best to leave it at that.
This brings us to one very important question. How will all these people perish? The short answer is in the second half of verse 8. Let’s also take a look at the long answer so we can understand what’s truly happening here.
How Will the Rider of the Pale horse Bring Death Upon the Earth?
The short answer: people will “die by the sword, famine and plague, and the wild beasts of the earth.” But what exactly does this mean?
This is where we want to remind ourselves to look for the meaning behind the symbolic image of the pale horse of Revelation. In other words, when this time period of the tribulation comes to the world, there isn’t going to be horsemen galloping across the earth killing people.
But what there will be, are events that are symbolized by these horse images that John sees. So let’s look at this verse closely and examine the words, “sword, famine and plague, and the wild beasts of the earth.”
Each one of these methods of death are found in the the first three riders of the white, red, and black horses.
The white horse will bring an increase of evil upon the earth from the revealing of the antichrist and the increase in deception among the people of the earth.
The red horse will bring division and war among people. This will range from family and friends up to nations and kingdoms. This division and war will be at a level never seen in the history of our planet. This is evident by the number of people that will perish during this time period.
The black horse will bring famine and pestilence upon the earth unequal to any other time period in history. When grocery stores shelves are empty, hungry people will do anything and everything to find ways to eat. They will go as far as murder and cannibalism.
The smell of death and blood in the air will drive wild animals into a feeding frenzy killing the depraved people that roam the streets. People will be forced to stay inside to protect themselves.
It Will Be a Time of Great Distress
Jesus spoke specifically of this time in His Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25).
“For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.”
(Matthew 24:21-22)
In summary, while the horsemen appear to John separately and in separate colors, they will all together usher in a distressful time period. A period of days that had to be shortened to seven years otherwise no one would survive.
They are all together a culmination of the events that will take place on earth at the beginning of God’s wrath upon sinful and unrepentant mankind.
If we take an even closer look, we can see clearly the events of today unfolding and pointing to the events of the meaning of the four horsemen of the apocalypse of the book of Revelation.
This is the reason many people call them the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Because the events that will occur on earth will be nothing short of apocalyptic.
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