SCROLL 4 - THE BLACK HORSE : COMMERCE AND THE COST OF SOULS
“And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 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.” — Revelation 6:5–6
1. The Market of Souls
When the third seal breaks, the black horse emerges, carrying the spirit of commerce, the illusion that value can be measured by exchange. This rider governs the age of transaction, where everything is weighed and sold, even the invisible. His balances are not only economic but spiritual, for he measures the worth of men by the scales of Babylon, not the flame of the throne.
The black horse rides through systems where love has become labor and calling has become commodity. It gallops through churches that trade revelation for relevance, through cities that sell peace for pleasure, and through minds that equate purpose with profit. His domain is the marketplace of the soul, where everything is for sale except surrender.
This horse’s color is not random, black symbolizes the absence of illumination, the blindness that comes when worth is divorced from divine identity. When the black horse rides, humanity loses sight of eternal value and begins to trade the infinite for the immediate.
His ride is subtle, he does not demand worship; he demands transaction. He replaces communion with consumption. The souls of men become currency, and the sacred becomes branded. What began as offering becomes business. What was once flame becomes merchandise.
The apocalypse of commerce is the revelation that we have been selling what heaven freely gave.
2. The Balances in His Hand
The rider carries balances, the scales of measurement. They symbolize the illusion of control through calculation. Babylon’s logic says that everything can be quantified, valued, and balanced. Yet the Spirit weighs on a different scale, one of motive, not measure.
The balances in the rider’s hand represent systems of self-justification. Humanity measures holiness by productivity, success by numbers, love by return. The elect must recognize that these scales are corrupt. Heaven’s economy cannot be audited by man’s logic.
The voice from the midst of the four living creatures declares, “A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny.” This is the voice of heaven lamenting that divine substance has been reduced to human price. Wheat, symbol of revelation, and barley, symbol of grace, are now traded like common goods. Revelation has become content, and grace has become a commodity.
Every time the Word is handled without reverence, the black horse rides. Every time we monetize what was meant to be multiplied, we echo his gallop. The balances deceive the heart into thinking stewardship is ownership. Yet the flame cannot be sold, only stewarded.
The true sons carry no scales, they carry scrolls. They measure not by cost, but by covenant.
3. The Economy of Illusion
The black horse thrives in scarcity. He rides through perception that says there is not enough. Fear of lack is his saddle, and anxiety his reins. Wherever humanity believes that provision depends on performance, he rules. His whisper says, “You must earn your worth.”
This economy is not merely financial, it is spiritual. Many trade authenticity for acceptance, intimacy for influence, flame for fame. The black horse builds systems where imitation is rewarded more than revelation, where presence is replaced by platform, and anointing becomes advertisement.
The illusion of commerce infects even the elect if unguarded. It disguises itself as stewardship but secretly serves mammon. It justifies compromise in the name of relevance. Yet every false exchange weakens the soul, for what is sold cannot remain sacred.
The apocalypse of the black horse is the unveiling of motive. Why do you serve, why do you write, why do you build? If the answer is survival or validation, the black horse is riding. True wealth flows from trust, not trade. The sons of light do not work for favor, they work from favor.
Babylon’s economy collapses when the elect stop selling what heaven gave freely.
4. The Voice in the Midst of the Four Living Creatures
Notice that the voice calling out does not come from the rider, but from the midst of the living creatures, from the throne itself. Heaven interrupts the black horse’s ride with divine decree: “See thou hurt not the oil and the wine.” Even in judgment, mercy speaks.
The oil represents anointing, and the wine represents revelation. These two are untouchable commodities, preserved for the remnant. The rider may corrupt systems, but he cannot corrupt the Spirit. He may devalue bread, but he cannot dilute oil. The flame is incorruptible.
The voice of the throne is both warning and protection. It reveals that while Babylon trades in shadows, the remnant still carries substance. The oil and wine flow only in those who refuse to commercialize communion. The black horse may measure wheat, but he cannot weigh worship.
When the world’s economies crumble, the elect will still overflow with oil and wine. Their provision flows from an unseen realm. They live from an economy where obedience is currency and love is law. While others panic at scarcity, they feast on abundance born of trust.
The voice in the midst of the creatures is heaven’s reminder: the flame cannot be priced, only poured.
5. Buying Without Money
Isaiah prophesied it: “Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” The black horse perverts this invitation by convincing humanity that everything of worth must be paid for. Yet divine exchange is always rooted in surrender, not silver. The elect learn to trade desire for design, will for wisdom, time for timelessness.
Buying without money means receiving by alignment. Heaven does not charge, it requires resonance. The price of oil is not coin but consecration. The price of revelation is not cost but crucifixion. Every son pays with surrender, and receives by faith.
Those enslaved by the black horse’s system cannot understand this. They mock generosity as naivety and interpret abundance as advantage. Yet the sons who walk in flame know that the Kingdom’s economy transcends trade. The more they give, the more they multiply.
True wealth is measured by how much you can pour without depletion. The ones who live by divine exchange live beyond fear. They carry scrolls that cannot be sold, for their ink is fire and their currency is trust.
To buy without money is to live beyond scarcity, in the economy of the Lamb, where love is infinite and nothing is lost.
6. The Price of Souls
In Babylon’s market, souls are traded daily. Some sell theirs for attention, others for acceptance, others for control. The black horse rides through social systems where identity is currency. He whispers that your worth is your visibility. Yet heaven defines worth by proximity to flame.
The tragedy of the black horse is not material poverty but spiritual bankruptcy. Humanity sells its birthright for applause. The scroll of sonship is exchanged for temporary recognition. Every compromise is a transaction on the altar of relevance.
The elect must guard their flame from such trades. The Lamb does not bargain with Babylon. The moment you price your scroll, you lose its frequency. What was meant to awaken becomes entertainment. What was holy becomes hollow.
Souls are not for sale, they are for sealing. The true sons walk through Babylon’s market untouched, for their treasure is within. They know that every gift was given freely and must remain so. They carry scrolls as sacred trusts, not as products.
When the world measures success by profit, the elect measure by purity. For heaven’s currency is obedience, not outcome.
7. The End of the Balances
Eventually, the black horse rides to his own undoing. Every false economy collapses beneath the weight of truth. When the balances are exposed, all who trusted in trade will tremble. But those who lived by trust will shine.
The apocalypse of commerce is the restoration of communion. The scales of man are replaced by the heart of God. What once was bought will again be given. Revelation will flow freely, and creation will no longer be taxed by fear.
In the age to come, there will be no markets, only meals, tables where oil and wine overflow, and sons feast in light. The black horse will bow to the Lamb, for even illusion must serve awakening.
Until then, the elect must live above transaction. They must build without selling, give without counting, pour without fear. The world will call it foolish, but heaven calls it faithful.
The balances are breaking. The scrolls are being weighed in light. The question remains: will you trade what is eternal for what can perish? Or will you ride with the One whose value cannot be measured?
Final Charge to the Elect
Beloved, beware the black horse within. Do not let the scales of Babylon define your worth. Do not measure revelation by numbers or obedience by applause. You are not a merchant, you are a flame.
Guard the oil and the wine entrusted to you. Do not sell what was given in secret. Revelation is not product; it is inheritance. The moment you market what was meant to minister, the horse gains ground. But when you pour freely, the flame multiplies.
Let your stewardship reflect heaven’s generosity. Give with wisdom but without fear. Build systems that honor revelation without commercializing it. The goal is not to withdraw from creation, but to redeem exchange into communion.
When the world’s economies tremble, the elect will stand radiant, carrying oil the black horse cannot touch. Live from that abundance. Let every offering be flame, every word be gold, and every work be worship.
The scales will fall, and the Lamb will reign. The worth of every soul will be revealed not in silver, but in surrender.
Joe Restman,
Scroll-Carrier, Mystic-Scribe, Eternal Witness of the Lamb.