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 the first woe - stinging locusts.

A stinging locust with the face of a man.
By Andrew Johnson

Study Tip:

Put verses in your own words.
The 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

13 And 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

1 And 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.

2 And 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.

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

4 And 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.

5 And 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.

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

7 And 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.

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

9 And 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.

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

11 And 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.

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

Margin notes:

"I beheld, and heard an angel flying." (8:13) - In some of the old biblical manuscripts, this verse reads "an eagle flying." Whether it's an eagle or an angel, they carry a warning of God's coming judgment.

"Woe, woe, woe." (8:13) - This is known as the three woes. So far, God has put limits on His judgments. Only a third of the trees will be destroyed (Revelation 8:7), and only a third of the seas and marine life will die (8:8-9). Likewise, just a third of the world's drinking water will be poisoned (8:10-11), and only a third of the sunlight will be blocked (8:12). But the sound of the last three trumpets will bring the last three woes, and things will get worse.

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

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

"Locusts." (9:3) - Many Preterists believe the locusts represent Muslim soldiers who battled Christian armies in the Middle Ages. Like the locust in John's vision, Muslim armies were "horsemen, famous for their beards with long hair like women's hair, with yellow turbans on their heads that looked like gold, and they had iron coats of armor." ("Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Mi.; page 717). Some Futurists believe this passage is a warning of actual locusts that will plague mankind in the final days. Other futurists are certain the locusts are not locusts at all. They are symbolic and represent demons. Still others feel this passage is a prediction of the holy war between Christians and Muslims and the future events of the final days. Additional Note: John's description of the locust attack is reminiscent of God's punishment on Egypt (Exodus 10:4; 10:12-15) in Moses' day. It is also eerily similar to Joel 2:4-10 which was written nine hundred years before John.

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

"Faces of men." (9:7) - Stinging bugs with human faces.

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

Today's question:

1. Who are "the inhabiters of the earth?" (8:13)

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

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. The "inhabiters of the earth" are people who belong to the world. They are unbelievers who don't carry God's seal on their foreheads. Believers live on the earth, but their home is in heaven. They are sealed by God and will be protected from the stinging locusts (9:4).

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 Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; 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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