SEAL THREE - THE BLACK HORSE
"And when he had opened the Third Seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld and lo a black horse: and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny and three measures of barley for a penny: and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine." - (REVELATION 6:5-6)
Once again our unbroken symbolism of Horse and Rider, shows us that this is the next stage of development in the decline of the Roman Empire. Now let us look at the distinguishing points in these two verses. The Black Horseman is said to have in his hand
A PAIR OF BALANCES
Once again the coinage of Imperial Rome helps us in our interpretation, since we find almost every province of the Empire under almost every Emperor, issued coins and medals inscribed with the symbol of a pair of scales or balances which represented justice and equity. The governors of the various provinces also had these scales or balances carved on their thrones or state chairs, whilst others struck coins bearing not only the emblem of the balances, but also an ear of corn signifying their task of gathering in the taxes due to the Emperor in their particular province.
The fact that the Horseman who carries these particular scales or balances is Black, denotes an era when justice had fallen into disrepute, and harsh and unjust taxation had driven the unfortunate peoples of the Empire into destitution. History records that in 212 A.D. the Emperor Caracalla granted the rights and privileges of the capital city of Rome to all the provinces of his vast Empire.
Emperor Geta Emperor Caracalla
The result was that the inhabitants of each province were now compelled to pay not only the local, provincial taxes, but also those already mandatory upon the citizens of Rome. The increased revenue was frequently used by the Emperors of this era to pay for the upkeep of their armies, and to buy off the frequently rebellious and mutinous Legions. Thus were the people, by unjust taxation, reduced to abject poverty at the very time they were suffering most from the effects of civil war and unrest across the length and breadth of the Empire. Further light and information is now given to us by
THE VOICE FROM THE THRONE
This mysterious voice pronounces upon the price of wheat and barley and warns against unjust or hurtful actions in relation to oil and wine. These very items were the ones used by most provinces with which to pay their taxes. The financial oppression which was taking place throughout the Empire is described by the historian Gibbon as:-
"a noxious weed of luxurious growth, darkening the Roman world with its deadly shade."
The Voice from the Throne, can he none other than that of the Everliving God, who hates financial corruption and debt usury. The prices given for the wheat and barley enable us to date the era of the prophecy, for they are the exact market prices for those commodities during the reign of Alexander Severus, by whose time the actual value of the silver denarius had been so adulterated by the admixture of base metals, that it had fallen to a third of the original value. The path was being paved for ultimate disaster and ruin.
It is I believe worth noting that national decline is almost always accompanied by a loss of civil liberties, breakdown in justice and law enforcement and an increase in taxation, leading to inflation, poverty and economic collapse. What took place in the Roman Empire centuries ago is being re-enacted in our own land to-day.
This brings us to the Fourth Seal.