Revelation 8:13-9:12 Lesson 479

Revelation 8:13-9:12 Lesson 479

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

The fifth trumpet brings stinging locusts.

Study Tip:

To better understand a verse, try putting it in your own words.
The extra time and thought it takes will help you get more meaning from each passage.

The Revelation of Saint John the Divine

The King James Bible

Revelation 8:13-9:12
The three woes

13And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!

Revelation 9:1-12
The fifth angel, the fifth trumpet, the first woe

1And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.

2And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

3And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

4And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.

5And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.

6And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

7And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.

8And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.

9And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.

10And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.

11And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.

12One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.

Margin notes:

"I beheld, and heard an angel flying." (8:13) - In older manuscripts this verse reads "an eagle flying." Whether it's an eagle or an angel, it is warning us of God's coming judgment.

"Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth." (8:13) - "Woe, woe woe to the people on earth." This is known as the three woes. So far God's judgments, announced by the first four trumpets, are limited. Only a third of the trees have been destroyed (Revelation 8:7), only a third of the seas and marine life have died (8:8-9), just a third of the worlds drinking water is poisonous (8:10-11), and only a third of the sunlight is blocked (8:12). But when the last three trumpets sound, things will get worse.

"I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth." (9:1) - This "star" is either an angel sent by God to punish, a demon, or perhaps Satan (Luke 10:18). Some believe the star is Jesus Christ because He has the keys to "the bottomless pit" (1:17-18). This could be, but as we see in verse 20:1, Christ can give the keys to others.

"Bottomless pit." (9:1) - A prison for demons. Even they hate the bottomless pit (Luke 8:27-31).

"Locusts." (9:3) - Many Preterist's believe the locusts symbolize the Muslim soldiers who fought Christianity in the middle ages. Many Futurists believe they represent real locusts that will plague mankind in the final days while other futurists believe the locusts represent demons. Still other Christians believe this passage predicted both the middle ages war with Muslims and the still to come events of the final days. Note: This description of the locust attack is reminiscent of the punishment God laid on Egypt (Exodus 10:4; 10:12-15) in Moses day and is eerily similar to Joel 2:4-10 written nine hundred years earlier.

"Only those men which have not the seal of God." (9:4) - Believers will be spared.

"Whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon." (9:11) - Abaddon translates into "destroyer." Many believe this is Satan.

"One woe is past." (9:12) - Two more "woes" will follow the sound of the sixth and seventh trumpets.

New Living Translation

Revelation 8:13-9:12

13 Then I looked, and I heard a single eagle crying loudly as it flew through the air, "Terror, terror, terror to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets."

Revelation 9:1-12
The Fifth Trumpet Brings the First Terror

1 Then the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen to earth from the sky, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. 2 When he opened it, smoke poured out as though from a huge furnace, and the sunlight and air turned dark from the smoke.

3 Then locusts came from the smoke and descended on the earth, and they were given power to sting like scorpions. 4 They were told not to harm the grass or plants or trees, but only the people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 They were told not to kill them but to torture them for five months with pain like the pain of a scorpion sting.

6 In those days people will seek death but will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them!

7 The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. They had what looked like gold crowns on their heads, and their faces looked like human faces. 8 They had hair like women's hair and teeth like the teeth of a lion. 9 They wore armor made of iron, and their wings roared like an army of chariots rushing into battle. 10 They had tails that stung like scorpions, and for five months they had the power to torment people. 11 Their king is the angel from the bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon-the Destroyer.

12 The first terror is past, but look, two more terrors are coming!

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Pray for the strength to resist sin. Ask forgiveness when you fall to temptation and give thanks when you don't.

Application thought for the day:

What does this segment teach about God's judgment?

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress Books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; "The Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies"; "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers published by Barbour publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
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