Bible Strands
Zechariah 6:3
the third white horses, and the fourth dappled horses—all of them strong.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The prophet Zechariah records a vision of successive chariots emerging, continuing the sequence begun in the previous verse. The text describes the horses attached to the third and fourth chariots before the prophet asks the interpreting angel for clarification.
The words — The Hebrew terms לְבָנִים (le.va.Nim) and בְּרֻדִּים (be.ru.Dim) literally denote "white" and "dappled." These adjectives modify סוּסִים (su.Sim), "horses," specifying their distinct coat patterns in the vision.
The thread — The vision of white horses parallels the white horse in Revelation 6:2, while the sequence of colored horses continues the imagery of Zechariah 1:8. The text also anticipates the varied horse colors described in Revelation 6:8.
Why it lands — The text records the physical description of the horses without explaining their meaning, requiring the reader to await the angel's interpretation in the following verse. It demands attention to the precise details of divine visions before seeking their application.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grisled and bay horses.
Cross-references
- Revelation 6:2 So I looked and saw a white horse, and its rider held a bow. And he was given a crown, and he rode out to overcome and conquer.
- Revelation 6:8 Then I looked and saw a pale green horse. Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed close behind. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill by sword, by famine, by plague, and by the beasts of the earth.
- Zechariah 1:8 I looked out into the night and saw a man riding on a red horse. He was standing among the myrtle trees in the hollow, and behind him were red, sorrel, and white horses.
- Daniel 2:33 its legs were iron, and its feet were part iron and part clay.
- Daniel 2:40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; for iron shatters and crushes all things, and like iron that crushes all things, it will shatter and crush all the others.
- Revelation 19:11 Then I saw heaven standing open, and there before me was a white horse. And its rider is called Faithful and True. With righteousness He judges and wages war.
- Revelation 20:11 Then I saw a great white throne and the One seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them.
- Zechariah 6:6 The one with the black horses is going toward the land of the north, the one with the white horses toward the west, and the one with the dappled horses toward the south.”