| Famine | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Other Names |
Limos |
|
First Appearance |
Book of Revelation |
|
Created by |
John of Patmos |
Origin[]
"When He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, "Come." I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard something like a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; but do not damage the oil and the wine." — Revelation 6:5–6 NASB
The third Horseman of the Apocalypse rides a black horse and is popularly understood to be Famine, as the Horseman carries a pair of balances or weighing scales, indicating the way that bread would have been weighed during a famine. The rider is typically portrayed as an emaciated man. Other authors interpret the third Horseman as the "Lord as a Law-Giver," holding Scales of Justice. In the passage, it is read that the indicated price of grain is about ten times normal (thus the famine interpretation popularity), with an entire day's wages (a denarius) buying enough wheat for only one person (one choenix, about 1.1 litres), or enough of the less nutritious barley for three, so that workers would struggle to feed their families. In the Gospels, the denarius is repeatedly mentioned as a monetary unit; for example, the denarius was the pay of a soldier for one day, and the day labor of a seasonal worker in the harvesting of grapes is also valued at one denarius (Matthew 20:2). Thus, it is probably a fact that with the approach of the Apocalypse, the most necessary food will rise in price greatly and the wages earned per day will be enough only for the minimum subsistence for the same day and nothing more.
Of the Four Horsemen, the black horse and its rider are the only ones whose appearance is accompanied by vocalization. John hears a voice, unidentified but coming from among the four living creatures, that speaks of the prices of wheat and barley, saying, "and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine". This suggests that the black horse's famine is to drive up the price of grain but leave oil and wine supplies unaffected (though out of reach of the ordinary worker). One explanation is that grain crops would have been more naturally susceptible to famine years or locust plagues than olive trees and grapevines, which root more deeply.
The statement might also suggest a continuing abundance of luxuries for the wealthy, while staples, such as bread, are scarce, though not completely depleted; such selective scarcity may result from injustice and the deliberate production of luxury crops for the wealthy over grain, as would have happened during the time the Book of Revelation was written. Alternatively, the preservation of oil and wine could symbolize the preservation of the Christian faithful, who use oil and wine in their sacraments.
According to the interpretatio graeca, he is Limos, god of famine.
Public Domain Appearances[]
Public Domain Novels[]
- The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1916)
Public Domain Comic Appearances[]
- Uncle Sam Quarterly #5
Public Domain Film Appearances[]
- The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921 film)