Bible Gateway passage: Revelation 6 - English Standard Version (2024)

The Seven Seals

6Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of ^(A)the seven seals, and I heard ^(B)one of the four living creatures say ^(C)with a voice like thunder, ^(D)“Come!” ²And I looked, and behold, ^(E)a white horse! And ^(F)its rider had a bow, and ^(G)a crown was given to him, and he came out ^(H)conquering, and to conquer.

³When he opened the second seal, I heard ^(I)the second living creature say, “Come!” ⁴And out came another horse, ^(J)bright red. Its rider was permitted ^(K)to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.

⁵When he opened the third seal, I heard the ^(L)third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, ^(M)a black horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. ⁶And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, ^(N)“A quart^[a] of wheat for a denarius,^[b] and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and ^(O)do not harm the oil and wine!”

⁷When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of ^(P)the fourth living creature say, “Come!” ⁸And I looked, and behold, ^(Q)a pale horse! And its rider's name was Death, and Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill ^(R)with sword and with famine and with pestilence and ^(S)by wild beasts of the earth.

⁹When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under ^(T)the altar ^(U)the souls of those who had been slain ^(V)for the word of God and for ^(W)the witness they had borne. ¹⁰They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, ^(X)holy and true, ^(Y)how long ^(Z)before you will judge and ^(AA)avenge our blood on ^(AB)those who dwell on the earth?” ¹¹Then they were each given ^(AC)a white robe and ^(AD)told to rest a little longer, ^(AE)until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers^{[c] (AF)}should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.

¹²When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, ^(AG)there was a great earthquake, and ^(AH)the sun became black as ^(AI)sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, ¹³and ^(AJ)the stars of the sky fell to the earth ^(AK)as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. ^14(AL)The sky vanished ^(AM)like a scroll that is being rolled up, and ^(AN)every mountain and island was removed from its place. ¹⁵Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave^[d] and free, ^(AO)hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, ^16(AP)calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of ^(AQ)him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, ¹⁷for ^(AR)the great day of their wrath has come, and ^(AS)who can stand?”