Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

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Albrecht Dürer, The Revelation of St. John: The Four Riders of the Apocalypse, 1497-98, Woodcut, 39 x 28 cm, Staatliche Kunsthalle, Karlsruhe

The "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" is a term used to describe four horsemen that appear in the Christian Bible in chapter six of the Book of Revelation. The verses traditionally describe the four horsemen as Pestilence, War, Famine, and Death.

[edit] Horses and their riders

[edit] The White Horse

Revelation 6:1 - 6:2 - "...When the Lamb had opened the first of the seven seals, I heard the first of the four beasts say with a thundering voice, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a white horse; and he that sat on him had a bow: and there was given unto him a crown, and he departed as conqueror and to conquest."

The white horse of the apocalyptic four may represent polar qualities of evil or righteousness, depending on interpretation.^{[citation needed]} The German-language Lutheran Stuttgarter Erklärungsbibel sees him as civil war and internal strife.

[edit] As evil

Some interpret the rider of the white horse to be the anti-christ, or a representation of false prophets, citing differences between the white horse in Revelation 6 and Jesus on the white Horse in Revelation 19. Revelation 19 Jesus has many crowns, but in Revelation 6 the rider has one.^[2] In Revelation 19, the rider on the horse is depicted as "The Word of God". The rider of the white horse may represent the second coming of Christ during which the end of the world/judgment day would occur. He may also just represent judgment of the living and the damned.

[edit] As righteous

Some say that the white horse representing Jesus Christ better represents Revelation as a whole. White is seen as a symbol of holiness, and Jesus is seen wearing a golden crown in Revelation 14:14.^[3]

Besides Christ, the horseman could represent the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was understood to have come upon the Apostles at Pentecost after Jesus' departure from earth. The appearance of the Lamb in Revelation 5 shows the triumphant arrival of Jesus in heaven, and the white horseman could represent the sending of the Holy Spirit by Jesus and the advance of the gospel of Jesus Christ^[4]

[edit] Red Horse

The Second Horseman.

The rider of the second horse is generally held to represent War. The red color of his horse represents blood spilled on the battlefield. He carries a greatsword, which represents battle and fighting.

Revelation 6:4 - "And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword."

[edit] Black Horse

The Third rider.

The third horseman, riding the black horse, is called Famine. The black color of the third horse could be a symbol of the dead.

Revelation 6:5 - 6:6 - “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.’”

[edit] Pale Green Horse

The fourth horseman, on the pale horse, is explicitly named Death.

The Greek word interpreted here as "pale" is elsewhere in the New Testament translated as "green". The horse is sometimes translated as "pale," "pale green," or "green". The pale greenish color of the fourth horse could mean plague, fear, sickness, and/or decay.

Revelation 6:7 - 6:8 - “And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a pale green horse; and he that sat on him was called Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, and that they (the four horsemen) should kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.”

[edit] Alternative interpretations

One interpretation is that the Four Horsemen are the Four Beasts mentioned in the visions of The Book of Daniel, representing four kings (or kingdoms), the last of which devours the world. The more conventional integration of this portion of Daniel with Revelation, however, is that the eleventh king (arising in the fourth kingdom) is the Antichrist.

Some Christian scholars do not interpret Revelation as prophecy of future events so much as a revealing of God's presence in the current events of the first century^{[citation needed]}.

In this sense the white horseman is a symbol for a conquering force from without. This is symbolized using the image of the feared Parthian mounted archer on his white horse and given the crown of a conqueror. The red rider who takes peace from the earth is the civil strife that ended the pax romana. The black rider is the famine that follows anytime there is foreign invasion or civil war. The final rider is the death that accompanies conflict and famine and the pestilence that springs up in the aftermath of these other tragedies.

While these images, and especially the Parthians, are specific to the Roman Empire of the early Christian era, there is a universality about them. Each new century, Christian interpreters see ways in which the horsemen, and Revelation in general, speaks to contemporary events. Some who believe Revelation applies to modern times can interpret the horses based on various ways their colours are used. Red, for example, often represents Communism, Black has been used as a symbol of Capitalism, while Green represents the rise of Islam. Pastor Irvin Baxter Jr. of Endtime Ministries espouses such a belief.^[5]

Not all interpretations agree that the horsemen are associated with contemporary events. One interpretation suggests that the horsemen are each associated with one of the first, four opened seals. ^[6] The white horse represents the first seal in which the city of Enoch^[7] is established in righteous conquest. The red horse represents the second seal in which bloodshed and wickedness reigns. The black horse represents the third seal in which famine, plague, and pestilence take hold of the world. The pale horse represents a time of escalated death and destruction. Further interpretation by scholars suggests that each horse represents a given time: the time of Enoch, the time of Noah, the time of Abraham, and the time of Christ.

Another challenged interpretation is that the white horse represents foreign warfare or conquest ("went forth conquering, and to conquer"), the red represents civil war or domestic strife ("that they should kill one another"), the black represents famine ("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"), and the pale represents pestilence or disease in its various forms (" to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth").

Another interpretation is that the rider on the white horse is the Holy Spirit being sent forth into the world after the death of Jesus. That the Fiery Red horse represents the blood shed and the slaying of the Christian martyrs (starting with the stoning of Stephen in Acts 7:54-8:1). The Black horse represents the scattering of the Jewish nation during the time of the Roman Empire, in 70 AD. the Pale, or pale green, horse represents the Islamic nation (with direct corralation between the rider's name being Death and Hades(Hell) following close behind him [Revelation 6:8])[3]

[edit] Pestilence, War, Famine and Death

This interpretation rearranges the order in which the horsemen arrive to end the world, and a slight change to their personae. Pestilence is portrayed as a distinct entity, separate from Famine, and takes Conquest's normal place in the lineup.

The first horseman to appear is Pestilence, who rides upon a white horse. Pestilence conquers the nations of the world, subjugating them to demonic powers of the world. In the wake of Pestilence comes War, riding a large, wild red horse and wielding a tremendous sword symbolizing continuing war over the domination of the world, killing millions in his path with his sword. In the wake of War, due to immense destruction because of War and Pestilence, is Famine. Famine is portly - riding upon a black, sickly horse - representing gluttony and hunger. And in the wake of Famine, comes the pale rider, Death. His horse is stark pale. He is followed by Hades and carries the remaining souls to their final destinations.^[8]

It is this interpretation which is most commonly used as the basis for pop culture's uses of the Four Horsemen concept.

[edit] Man, Satan, Slavery wage conditions, Death

This identification accounts for the descriptions of each horsemen and also fits them to the seven sealed scroll. ^[9]

The Law provided for redemption of slaves. In the time of the apostles, a seven-sealed scroll was written if a person fell into slavery. The details of the redemption - who was to be redeemed, who they were to be redeemed from, and slavery conditions to be removed.^[10]

The first horseman is man. God told Adam and Eve to go forth and conquer (subdue). Before The Fall man was righteous. (white horse) Man is the one who is to be redeemed.

The second horseman is Satan. Satan took peace from the earth and began causing men to kill one another.

The third horseman brings the slavery wage conditions under which man must serve Satan. One day's supply for one day's work. The conditions are set so man is unable to work his way out of slavery.

The fourth horseman is Death.

[edit] Riders identified as nations

Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, by Viktor Vasnetsov (1887).

This interpretation is based on few basic rules and Living Bible Paraphrased was used as a source:

1. The Book of Revelation is about the earth and the happenings on it, unless otherwise specified.
2. Each seal must have a global impact unless otherwise specified.
3. The described events must occur after the revelation was written. Otherwise the prophecy would not actually be a prophecy and then the symbolism would have been meaningless.
4. Symbols must have meanings, ie. horses are symbols of one kind of things and their riders symbolise things of another kind.
5. Since the seals are in order, they must be fulfilled in order.
6. The key is the fourth seal since it is the only seal that gives any indication as to the meaning of a seal.

According to the source^[11] this particular interpretation was expressed in a table represented below:

[edit] Other Biblical references

Zechariah also sees the Horsemen (Zech 6:1-5). During this, first come the Red, then White, then Black, and finally the "Grisled and Bay" (the Pale Horses by implication). They are referred to as "the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth."

[edit] Other Horsemen references

The Four Horsemen were prominently featured in the 2009 film 'Better the Devil You Know' (directed by Greg Augustine). They symbolize the personal demons that must be defeated by the main characters in order to overcome themselves and resolve their past. The horsemen are sent by a deceased high school friend as she taps into the mind of the main character, to which she causes his dream to become a reality.

Acording to Terry Pratchett in the Discworld novel Thief of Time there is a fifth horseman: Ronnie Soak (Kaos spelled backwards). He is the fifth member who quit before the group became famous.

In Highlander: The Series, the Four Horsemen are the Immortals Kronos, Methos, Silas, and Caspian.

The final level in the single player roguelike computer game Nethack features the three riders Death, Famine, and Pestilence. The fourth rider, War, is assumed to be the player.

"The Four Horsemen" are the third and final boss encounter in the Military Quarter in Naxxramas, a raid zone in World of Warcraft: Zeliek as the White Rider of Conquest, Rivendare / Mograine as the Red Rider of War, Blaumeux as the Black Rider of Famine, and Korth'azz as the Pale Rider of Death. Naxxramas was originally a level 60 raid, however with the release of the Wrath of the Lich King expansion it was tuned for level 80 players and the original version was removed.

In the game City of Heroes, players must defeat the four Riders in the second mission of The Lady Grey Task Force. These Riders are said to be among the alien Rikti race's most fearsome warriors and have the names Rider: War, Rider: Famine, Rider: Pestilence, and Rider: Death. In this high level (45-50) task force, a team of both heroes and villains can work together to defeat these enemies as they appear repeatedly throughout the mission. The mission culminates in a battle against all four Riders at once and allows players to continue onward in their drive to save the world from total war and invasion by the alien forces of the Rikti.

There is a song called The Four Horsemen on the Metallica album Kill 'Em All (originally called The Mechanix) that directly references the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Coldplay 2008's album "Viva La Vida" (subtitled "Death and all his friends") as a reference to The Four Horsemen; quoting the last line of the last song, "I don't want to follow Death and all of his friends." Also a song called The Four Horsemen on the Judas Priest 2008's album Nostradamus that directly references the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

The lyrics to "Cattle and the Creeping Things" by The Hold Steady refer to the Four Horsemen, (among several other Biblical references) - "They got to the part with the cattle and the creeping things. They said I'm pretty sure we've heard this one before. Don't it all end up in some revelation? With four guys on horses, and violent red visions? Famine, and death, and pestilence and war? I'm pretty sure I heard this one before."

The lyrics to "Revelations" by DragonForce feature a veiled reference to the Four Horsemen; quoting the latter part of the chorus, "And the Horsemen shall come, they will judge all your lives, Revelations will now be unveiled."

The tabletop games Warhammer and Warhammer 40K feature four dark gods of Chaos; Nurgle, Khorne, Slaanesh, and Tzeentch, who represent Pestilence, War, Famine and Death respectively. Slaanesh is named 'The Prince of Excess' and 'The Keeper of Secrets' among other names, and his followers deprive themselves of the many pleasures and comforts others seek, representing the malnurishment of Famine. Tzeentch is the God of Change, with death being a symbol of change.

The Four Horsemen of Notre Dame was a group of football players at the University of Notre Dame under coach Knute Rockne in 1924. They were Harry Stuhldreher, Don Miller, Jim Crowley, and Elmer Layden. A US Stamp was issued in their honor in 1998 bearing a black and white image of the four players all on dark horses.

In the Cartoon series X-Men, Apocalypse captured and changed four beings into his Horsemen, giving them the names War, Famine, Pestilence, and Death, each of them containing abilities that their given name implies.

The Horsemen are also referenced in Charmed (season 2) in the episode "Apocalypse Not." These horseman are actually well dressed demons who have to try and bring about the apocalypse by a certain time or they are killed by the source of all evil.

Three of the Four Horsemen appear near the end of the 1991 film The Rapture.

In an episode of "Robot Chicken" the Four Horsemen were referenced in a sketch called Apocalypse Ponies, parodying both My Little Ponies and the Four Horsemen.

In the protests at the Bank of England on the opening day of the G-20 summit, 2009, the four different protest groups represented themselves with the Four Horsemen. The Red Horse represented War, the Silver Financial Crime, the Green represented The Enviroment and Climate Change, and the Black horse represented Homeless, amongst other issues related to land and homes.

[edit] See also

Christianity portal

• Antichrist
• Apocalypse
• Armageddon
• Book of Revelation
• Eschatology
• Horsemen of Apocalypse (comics)
• Summary of Christian eschatological differences
• The book with seven seals (oratorio)
• The Four Horsemen (song)
• Good Omens
• Thief of Time
• Four Horsemen of the Infocalypse
• Mythology and fiction in NetHack

[edit] External links

• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1258922/ (Better the Devil You Know at imdb.com)
• http://www.bilderberg.org/trib.htm#timeline
• http://www.theapproachingapocalypse.com THE APPROACHING APOCALYPSE: A New Interpretation of Daniel and Revelation

• Media related to Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse at Wikimedia Commons

[edit] References