And Behold, A White Horse

That line from Johnny Cash was all I could think of when these bizarre photos were posted on social media today.

Here’s how the Washington Post reported the story.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was shown riding a white horse in the snow on a sacred mountain, in several photographs released by state media Wednesday that experts said could presage a major announcement.

“His horseback march in Mount Paektu is a great event of weighty importance in the history of the Korean revolution,” the Korean Central News Agency reported.

“All the officials who accompanied him to the top of the mountain felt overflowing emotion and joy and [were] convinced that there will be a great operation to strike the world with wonder again and advance the Korean revolution a step forward.”

In North Korea’s state mythology, Mount Paektu is supposed to be the spiritual home of the Kim dynasty and the birthplace of Kim Jong Un’s father.

For more on the symbolism and its importance to Kim and the North Korean people, see this overview from Josh Smith, the Reuters correspondent in Seoul: “The North Korean history behind Kim Jong Un’s mountain horse ride.“

Here’s how Hankyoreh, South Korea’s progressive daily, sees it: “Kim Jong-un sends message of self-reliance and perseverance to N. Korean people.“

The “behold, a white horse” line is from the Bible and sung in “The Man Comes Around,” one of the last albums Johnny Cash recorded before his untimely death in 2003. Was Kim Jong Un reading The Book of Revelations? I think not. Listening to Johnny Cash? Maybe. Who doesn’t love The Man in Black?

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