3rd Seal The Black Horse

Revelation 6:5-6

The 3rd seal The Black Horse

The third Seal: famines caused by the first two seals ( Matthew 24:7

⁵ When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come!" I looked, and there before me was ^aa black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. ⁶Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, "^bA liter of wheat for a ^cday’s wages, and ^dthree liters of barley for a day’s wages, and ^edo not damage the oil and the wine!"  

a. This is a symbol of famine which is the result of the conquest and wars of the first two seals. 
    Cp Lamentations 4:4-8; Matthew 24:7

b. Bread by measure and weight signify scarcity of food (Ezekiel 4:10-17)

c. 17 cents the daily wage (Matthew 20:1-16)

 d. A measure was about one liter, a slave's daily ration, an amount usually purchased for about 2 cents. One could usually buy 8 measures of wheat or 24 measures of barley for a penny, but during this future famine only 1 measure of wheat or 3 measures of barley can be purchased for a penny. This will make food eight times higher than in normal times.

e. The olives and grapes need no cultivation; hence their ruthless destruction is forbidden.