When He opened the third seal, a black horse appeared with a rider holding a pair of scales. A voice from the midst of the four living creatures declared a quart of wheat for a denarius and three quarts of barley for a denarius while commanding that the oil and the wine not be harmed. This rider brings famine through prolonged undernourishment that weakens bodies and crushes spirits. The black color signifies the mournful and unhealthy appearance of those enduring scarcity and want as a judgment. The pair of scales, translating the Greek word zugón, evokes both a yoke of bondage and a balance for determining equal measures in the marketplace. Such scales symbolize both justice and fraudulent oppression when manipulated during times of shortage. The voice belongs to God who sets inflated prices that force difficult choices between wheat and barley for survival. These conditions leave no margin for health or advancement especially for those with families. Oil and wine remain relatively available yet unaffordable for the average person whose resources go entirely to grain. The third living creature with a face like a man presents this horseman and places a human face on the judgment. Wars destroy farmland and commerce while oppression and corruption ration food through deceitful control. Even droughts and floods often trace to human actions such as poor farming or unwise building. The black horse follows the red horse to enforce scarcity so that people remain weak and many perish.