καὶ εἶδον, καὶ ἰδοὺ ἵππος χλωρός, καὶ ὁ καθήμενος ἐπάνω αὐτοῦ ὄνομα αὐτῷ [ὁ] θάνατος, καὶ ὁ ᾅδης ἠκολούθει μετ᾽ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτοῖς ἐξουσία ἐπὶ τὸ τέταρτον τῆς γῆς ἀποκτεῖναι ἐν ῥομφαίᾳ καὶ ἐν λιμῷ καὶ ἐν θανάτῳ καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν θηρίων τῆς γῆς.
8I looked, and there was a pale green horse! Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed with him; they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, famine, and pestilence and by the wild animals of the earth.
The Greek that is translated as “Hades followed with him” or similar in English is translated in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) as Hades war sein Reitknecht or “Hades was his groom (or “cavalry servant”).”
The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated in English as “wild animal” or similar is translated in Newari as “animal that lives in the jungle.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
The Greek that is translated as “pale green” or “pale” in English is translated in Tsafiki as “sickly yellow” which is used related to health. (Source: Bruce Moore in: Notes on Translation 1/1992, p. 1ff.)
Following are a number of back-translations of Revelation 6:8:
For verse 7 see verses 1, 3, 5.
And I saw, and behold: see Rev. 6.2.
A pale horse: the Greek word can be taken to mean “green” or “yellowish green”; New Revised Standard Version translates “pale green”; New Jerusalem Bible “deathly pale”; Revised English Bible “sickly pale.” At least one language translates this as “a light dusty color.”
Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed him: this is the only horse whose rider is given a name. It is not certain whether the verb followed means that Hades also was riding a horse; it does not mean that Hades was on the same horse that Death rode. So translators need to use a very general word for followed. For Death and Hades see 1.18.
And they were given power over a fourth of the earth: the passive they were given means that God gave them this power. Since the focus of this clause is really not on the agent, in many languages one may say “they received power over one quarter…” and thus avoid a passive construction. In 2.26 the word for power (or, authority) meant to “rule over”; here in this verse it means “to have the power to hurt (or, kill) people.” So in languages where one must state the domain of the authority, this clause may be rendered “they received the authority to hurt (or, kill) one quarter of the people in the world.” The phrase a fourth of the earth is not used in a spatial sense, that is, one fourth of the surface of the globe, but in a numerical sense, one fourth of the world’s population.
To kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence: here sword (translating the Greek word used in 1.16; 2.12, 16) translates a different Greek word from the one used in verse 4; in translation, however, the same word may be used. Sword stands for battle; death by famine is starvation caused by shortage of food; andpestilence translates the Greek word “death” (as the same Greek word translates the Hebrew word for “pestilence” in the Septuagint of Lev 26.25; Jer 14.12; 24.10; and elsewhere), meaning “disease” or “epidemic.”
And by wild beasts of the earth: here the Greek preposition hupo is used, indicating subordinate agency (living creatures as agents); in the case of sword, famine, and pestilence, the preposition en is used, indicating means (as with tools). The phrase of the earth indicates these are wild land animals. Many languages will express agency and means in exactly the same manner.
Alternative translation models for verse 8 are:
• I looked and saw there a pale-colored horse. Its rider had the name Death, and another being named World of the Dead was following close behind the first one. They received the power to kill one quarter of the people on earth by means of war, lack of food (or, starvation), sickness of all kinds, and wild animals.
Or:
• … God gave them the power to use war, famine, epidemics, and wild animals to kill one quarter of the people on the earth.
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
6:8a
Then I looked and saw: The Greek words are literally “I saw, and look,” as in 6:2. Translate these words in the same way.
a pale green horse. Its rider’s name was Death: The Greek words are literally “a pale horse and one sitting on it, the name for him (was) Death.” The words indicate that John saw both the horse and the rider at the same time but described the horse first. Translate these words similarly to “was a white horse! Its rider held a bow” in 6:2a. For example:
a pale horse and a rider with the name of Death
-or-
someone on a pale horse, and his name was Death
pale green: The Greek word the Berean Standard Bible translates as pale green refers to a pale yellowish or greenish gray color. Here the word probably represents the color of someone very sick and dying. Other ways to translate this color are:
pale (New International Version)
-or-
sickly pale (Revised English Bible)
-or-
sickly green (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
Death: Here the word Death is used figuratively as the name of a being. In some languages it is more natural to translate Death with a verb or a phrase. For example:
Dying
-or-
The source of death
-or-
The one who causes people to die
6:8b
Hades: The word Hades refers to the place where the spirits of dead people live before God judges everyone.
Some ways to translate Hades are:
• Use the name in your language for the place of the spirits of dead people.
Use a descriptive phrase. For example:
the place of the dead
-or-
the land/world of the dead
• Use the Greek word and explain it in your translation. For example:
Hades ⌊the place of the dead⌋
Here the word is used figuratively as the name of a being. This being named Hades follows a being named Death. Hades was not on a horse. In some languages referring to the place of the dead as a person is not natural. If that is true in your language, you may want to:
• Explain the figurative use of the word in your translation. For example:
⌊someone named⌋ Hades
• Translate literally and explain its use in a footnote. An example footnote is:
The word “Hades” is used like the name of a being. The whole clause refers figuratively to many people dying and their spirits going immediately to the place of the dead.
See how you translated this word in 1:18.
6:8c
And they were given authority: This clause is passive. Some languages must use an active clause. For example:
And ⌊God⌋ gave to them power
-or-
And they received power ⌊from God⌋
authority: The word authority refers to the authority and ability to do something. Another way to translate this word is:
power (New International Version)
over a fourth of the earth: This phrase refers to a quarter of the people living on earth at the time this prophecy occurs. In some languages it is more natural to refer to the people rather than the earth. For example:
over a fourth/quarter of ⌊the people on⌋ the earth
fourth: Here, this word means “one out of four.” For example, in a group of four thousand people, one thousand would die. Other ways to translate this word are:
one part in four ⌊parts⌋
-or-
one of four
-or-
killing one part and leaving three parts alive
6:8d
by sword, by famine, by plague, and by the beasts of the earth: These words indicate there were four ways that the pale horse and its rider caused people to die.
sword: A sword is a hand-held weapon that cuts and stabs. Here the word sword represents any weapon which someone uses to kill someone else. It is probably a symbol for war here. For example:
power…to kill people using wars (God’s Word)
See how you translated this word in 6:4.
famine: This word refers to an extreme shortage of food. During a famine, people die from hunger. Another way to translate this is:
by starvation (New Century Version)
plague: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as plague is literally “death.” Here, the Greek word probably refers to diseases or other things that kill a lot of people in many places. Other ways to translate it are:
pestilence (Revised Standard Version)
-or-
disease (New Century Version)
Some languages do not have a general word such as plague. If that is true in your language, you may need to use a descriptive phrase. For example:
things that cause much death
the beasts of the earth: Here the word beasts refers to animals that attack and kill people. In some languages the word beasts already implies the phrase of the earth. If that is true in your language, you may want to omit that phrase. For example:
wild animals (Good News Translation)
General Comment on 6:8d
In the Greek, as in the Berean Standard Bible, the first three items (sword, famine, plague) are singular, but they refer generally to one or more occurrences of each one. In some languages it is more natural to translate each one as plural. For example:
wars, famines, plagues, and the wild animals on the earth (God’s Word)
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