The Pale Horse And His Rider

8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?




Back in ol’ Army Texas A&M there was a greasy spoon restaurant at Northgate that I only went to a couple of times ever. The first time there a B side on the jukebox caught my eye. From the Bible. I played it and it literally put the fear of God in me. I thought I was above all that nonsense. I’m listening to it decades later now. Sung this time by Rattlesnake Annie. I bought her tape because I had heard of her, but mostly for this song.

It’s in three-four time like a waltz, but! It pounds. It’s perfect. Annie does it great, but when the author and his wife Audrey sang it in hillbilly harmony, I wanted to kneel right there naked before God and beg for mercy. You could picture it, feel it, the very breath of hellfire down your neck. Sort of like when I saw Walt Disney put in animation the song Ghost Riders In The Sky.

Why does the apocalypse scare so badly? What is its appeal? Just this side of us that likes a good fright from a ghost story?

I had a Country Band in Switzerland and was hired once to promote a new Swiss Watch. This Catholic girl heard us and invited me to church with her when she heard me sing I Saw The Light. She thought I might put a little fire into Catholic Mass.

I ordered the sheet music for it, but remembered this song also and ordered sheet music for it too. The Catholic Church there in Bern didn’t know what hit them.



The Pale Horse And His Rider

Listen poor sinner
You’re drifting away
From the dear Savior
Who’s pleading today
What will you do
With the Savior at night
When the pale horse
And his rider pass by.

The time now ain’t long
When the Savior will come
Then you’ll be judged
By the deeds you have done
On that judgment day
You’ll weep and you’ll cry
When the pale horse
And his rider pass by.

When that trumpet sounds
On the sinners below
Not even the angels
In heaven will know
That’s when you’ll wish
You had Jesus nigh
When the pale horse
And his rider pass by.

Won’t you redeem
Your poor wicked soul
For you can’t pay your way
With silver and gold
If you’re not saved
You’ll be lost to the night
When the pale horse
And his rider pass by.


By Hank Williams