The third horseman

Wednesday September 1, 2021

The third horseman

When the Lamb opened the third seal I heard the third living being say: Come. I looked and saw a black horse appear. The one who was riding it held a scale in his hand. And I heard like a voice say, in the midst of the four living creatures : A measure of wheat for a piece of silver and three measures of barley for a piece of silver, but do not touch the oil and the wine. Revelation 6:5,6

As the Lamb opens the third seal, the pressure of events grows stronger and stronger. The dark horse enters the scene with a rider holding a scales, symbol of an economic system based on trade and money. This system is turned upside down and the result is a terrible famine.

Currently, the world economic system is going through a serious crisis. Already a billion people on earth are not getting enough of their food. What will it be like when the third seal is opened ? The already poor countries will be the first to be affected, the same countries where, currently, unrest and civil wars are rife with the catastrophic humanitarian consequences that we know. Initially, the rich countries will be less affected ; This is what tells us about the fact that oil and wine, expensive products that are not essential, will be spared. On the other hand, the poor will no longer have the money to buy the minimum subsistence.

The global economic system, based only on money, inevitably creates perverse effects and cannot last. We are seeing it now with the economic crisis : the rich are getting richer and the poor poorer and poorer.

The love of money is a big trap for men. We know from experience that money stifles feelings of kindness, mercy, and giving of self. Money is capable of leading men to commit the most vicious and wicked acts, in the eyes of God and of men ; think of Balaam and Judas.

We live in a world that will tip over to judgments. Let us be full of compassion for those who, already now, are suffering in their bodies. Let us do what is in our power to relieve misery when we encounter it (Proverbs 3:27,28 ; James 2:15,16). Let us not forget either that many of our contemporaries are very afraid of the future : let us bring them the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.

Source (Pleasing the Lord)