The Third Seal
Economic Oppression 193-284 A.D.
And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the
third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld a
black horse; and he that sat on him had a
pair of balances in his hand. Rev 6: 5
A Pair of Balances
Symbol of the Roman Tax Collector
For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above
be black. Jer 4:28
Having taken the purple by force, Septimus Severus
viewed the Senate as a threat. His power
depended entirely on the support of the army. On his
deathbed he advised
his son to enrich the soldiers and despise everyone
else.
Taking his father's advice, Caracalla raised the pay of
the soldiers 50
percent. Then he waged war against the wealthy
aristocracy by doubling the inheritance tax. To extend
the tax base, he added a further burden by extending
the right of citizenship to every inhabitant of the empire.
Swarms of tax collectors descended on the provinces
like locusts causing agitation and terror. The scholar
Lactanicus wrote that "the whole scene was filled with
wailing and sadness."
The crushing weight of Caracalla's "iron scepter"
discouraged industry and exhausted the empire. The
stifling oppression effected the literature, art,
philosophy and architecture of the period.
The color black in scripture is associated with
mourning, judgment and desolation. It can be further
understood when contrasted with the
white of the first seal.
The Black Horse
- Defeat - Barbarian's Loot the Empire
- Mourning - Government Makes Life
Miserable
- Poverty - Inflation, Scarcity, Economic
Breakdown
- Bad Emperors - Extravagant, Selfish,
Foolish
The White Horse
- Victory - Roman Armies Invincible
- Joy - Golden Age - Peace and
Happiness
- Prosperity - Low Taxes, Strong
Economy
- Good Emperors - The Five "Good"
Emperors
A Measure of Wheat for a Penny
Signifies Exorbitant Prices - Runaway Inflation
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. Rev 6: 6
And when he had agreed with the laborers
for a
penny a day, he sent them into his
vineyard. Mat 20:2
The measure is a Greek koinix, about 1.5
pints, and the penny is the denarius,
a coin which was a days wage for a
laborer.
This price represents severe
conditions of shortage, a wage that would
allow a laborer barely enough
to survive.
When the middle and then the upper class was
bankrupted, tax revenues
plunged. Strapped for cash the empire did
what all
governments do in that situation, they
debased the
currency.
The silver content of the most common coin, the
denarius, was a hefty 90% in the age of Nero.
Two centuries later, by the reign of
Claudius II
(268 - 270 A.D.), it was down to a meager 0.2%.
The value of silver surged and inflation raged.
One historian estimates that the cost of a
measure of
Egyptian wheat rose from seven drachmas in
the second century to 120,000 in the third
century -
an inflation of 15,000 percent.
Do Not Hurt the Oil or the Wine
A Difficult Phrase
This expression is difficult. It seems every
expositor
has a different idea on what it means.
One expositor mentioned that the death penalty
was issued to anyone cutting down their own olive
trees or vineyards to prevent taxation.
(Hemmenway)
Another mentions that the Greek word "adikeo"
translated "hurt" in
verse 6
actually means to be unjust. " Be not unjust
with the oil and wine."
The Empire Begins to Fall
Other Insights Into This Time of Trouble
The barbarians themselves caused inflation by looting
the empire and disrupting trade. The civil war
prevented the continuity necessary for a policy
of recovery.
Another major drag on the economy was the dole.
Millions were spent on bread and circuses for
the non-working poor.
But, Gibbon notes in strong language the ruinous
edicts promulgated in the reign of Caracalla
and his successors, as being
the prominent cause of the decline and
fall of the empire.
And then entered the pale horse.
