Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I
heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like
thunder, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its
rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out
conquering, and to conquer.

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

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

  When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth
living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, 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 with
sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the
earth.

  When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of
those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness
they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign
Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our
blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a
white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of
their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who
were to be killed as they themselves had been.

  When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a
great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full
moon became like blood, and the stars of the sky fell to the earth
as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. The
sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every
mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of
the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the
powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves
and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and
rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated
on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of
their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001
by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by
permission. All rights reserved.