What does Revelation 6:8 mean?
The fourth rider John saw was named Death. The horse on which he rode is given an eerie description by John. While many English translations use terms such as "pale" or "ashen," the original language describes this horse's color as chlōros. This is a yellow-tinged green, the same word to describe the color of the grass on which the 5,000 sat to be fed by Jesus (Mark 6:39). The same color word also appears in Revelation 8:7 and 9:4. Applied to something like a horse, this color suggests decaying flesh.Death and Hades, the unseen world, follow this fourth rider, claiming its victims. The damage this rider causes is staggering. One fourth of the world's population die in this judgment. They fall victim to the sword, likely in civil war and infighting, starvation, pestilence, and savage animals. Based on current world populations, this death toll would be nearly two billion. Obviously, the tribulation is a dreadful time of judgment on the wicked. We believers ought to be thankful that God has delivered us from the wrath to come (1 Thessalonians 1:10).