Revelation Session 14

Outline

I. Setting the Stage

Recap and where we are going.

Read our passage in context

II. Historical & Geographical Background.

Where is the original audience in all of this

III. Exposition of the 5th trumpet (vv. 1-12)

IV. Exposition of the 6th trumpet (vv.13-21)

V. Theological Reflections

Overarching theological insight of the passage

VI. Eschatological Views

VII. Application

Setting the Stage

We have already seen:

The seven seals that reveal broad patterns of redemptive history 6-8:1

White Horse (conquest) 6:1-2

Red Horse (war) 6:3-4

Black horse (famine) 6:5-6

Pale horse (death) 6:7-8

Seal – Martyrs under the altar 6:9-11

Seal – Cosmic disturbance / Day of Wrath (6:12-17)

Seal – Silence (8-1)

The 7th seal introduced the trumpets. The first 4 affected the Natural world

An eagle that warned: “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth.”

Now the intensity escalates.

The first four trumpets struck creation. The last three (the three “woes”) strike humanity directly.

Chapter 9 shows us something sobering:

When people refuse to repent, judgment does not soften them — it exposes what already rules them.

Revelation 9:1–21 LSB

1 Then the fifth angel sounded. Then I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth, and the key of the pit of the abyss was given to him. 2 And he opened the pit of the abyss and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit. 3 Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 4 And they were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man. 6 And in those days men will seek death and will never find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them. 7 And the appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle. And on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. 8 And they had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions. 9 And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses running to battle. 10 And they have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months. 11 They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon. 12 One woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things. 13 Then the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 14 one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who have been bound at the great river Euphrates.” 15 And the four angels were released, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, so that they would kill a third of mankind. 16 And the number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them. 17 And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who sit on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths come fire and smoke and brimstone. 18 A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which came out of their mouths. 19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents, having heads, and with them they do harm. 20 And the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. 21 And they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their sexual immorality nor of their thefts.

II. Historical & Geographical Background

We must remember who is John writing to: Churches in Asia Minor John writes to churches in Asia Minor living under:

Roman imperial power

Occult practices and pagan worship

Emperor worship

Military dominance

Ephesus and Pergamum in particular were centers of magic arts (Acts 19). The spiritual world was not theoretical to them. It was assumed.

Apocalyptic imagery would immediately communicate:

Exodus plagues (Ex 7-12)

Joel’s locust invasion (described in military and cosmic terms Joel 1:4; 2:1-11

Isaiah’s judgment oracles (13, 24, 34) where there is cosmic collapse with darkened sun, and trembling earth.

Jeremiah’s northern army imagery (1, 4, 6)

The original audience would not have thought, “What modern weapon is this?”

They would have thought:

“This is plague language. This is judgment language. This is spiritual warfare.”

III. Exposition of the 5th Trumpet

Α. Τhe Fallen Star and the Key

Revelation 9:1 LSB

1 Then the fifth angel sounded. Then I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth, and the key of the pit of the abyss was given to him.

First observation the star is personal “he was given” this is not a meteor. It is a being. In Scripture, stars often represent angelic beings:

Job 38:7 LSB

7 When the morning stars sang together And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

Luke 10:18 LSB

18 And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.

The phrase “fallen” (perfect tense idea — already fallen) suggests prior fall, not the act of falling at that moment.

So who is this?

Three major options:

1. Satan himself

2. A fallen angel under Satan

3. A good angel executing judgment

It could be Satan, but John has no problem naming Satan as he does so in Revelation 12 and 20.

But we know that it is not a holy angel because angels do not fall, the descend.

also the abyss seams to be the realm or domain of demons

“He was given a key” whatever authority he has has been delegated. Even demonic activity requires divine permission. This echoes Job 1-2. Satan acts only by permission and within the limits set by God. God is sovereign.

B. The Abyss Opened (v. 2)

Revelation 9:2 LSB

2 And he opened the pit of the abyss and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit.

The Greek word for Abyss: abyssos (bottomless pit, deep pit, the tunnel that leads down to the pit).

It is a place of imprisonment and or confinement .

Luke 8:31 LSB

31 And they were pleading with Him not to command them to go away into the abyss.

Revelation 20:1–3 LSB

1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3 and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were finished. After these things he must be released for a short time.

At any rate, when it opens smoke rises. Smoke in Scripture signals:

Divine judgment (Genesis 19:28 — Sodom)

Sinai’s holy terror (Exodus 19:18)

Concealment and obscurity (Exodus 10:21-23)

Notice what happens next though…

“and the sun and the air were darkened but the smoke of the pit”

This is not:

• Exodus 19 holiness-smoke.

• 1 Kings 8 temple-glory darkness. “The Lord has said he would dwell in thick darkness”

• Isaiah 6 veiling glory.

This is counterfeit darkness. This is spiritual imagery where darkness spreads, vision is obscured and truth becomes harder to see. When demonic influences increases, clarity decreases

2 Corinthians 4:4 LSB

4 in whose case the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

This is not merely physical darkness. It is moral, spiritual, and intellectual darkness.

“With so many voices screaming lies, it’s a wonder anyone finds the truth”

John MacArthur

This is demonic activity but not “The Exorcist” type of activity, that one is easier.

C. The Locusts from the Smoke (vv.3-6)

Revelation 9:3–6 LSB

3 Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 4 And they were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man. 6 And in those days men will seek death and will never find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them.

Imagery from Joel 1-2 and the 8th plague of Egypt in Ex 10. But these are not natural Locust

They do not harm grass or trees.

They harm people

They are limited to 5 months (locust natural life cycle)

They cannot Kill

This is supernatural torment: But they are told to only harm

“those who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads” (v. 4)

This connects directly to Revelation 7. Sealing believers is not symbolic it is a protective reality. You cannot lose your salvation after God has given it to you. You have been sealed. And God distinguishes His own.

And the torment has a limited duration appointed by God. This is measured Judgement.

Now notice v.6:

Revelation 9:6 LSB

6 And in those days men will seek death and will never find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them.

This is psychological, spiritual anguish, it resembles the torment of guilt, the collapse of meaning, the despair of idolatry is exposed. These are judgements worse than death.

Romans 1 shows the pattern, when God gives people over to their desires, the result is disintegration.

D. The Description of the Locust (vv. 7-10)

Revelation 9:7–10 LSB

7 And the appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle. And on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. 8 And they had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions. 9 And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses running to battle. 10 And they have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months.

I do not believe this is meant to be diagrammed. It is compounded terror. John piles up OT battle imagery:

Joel 2:4-5 (horses, chariots)

Daniel 7 (hybrid beasts)

Judges 5 (war imagery)

Some people see modern helicopters or military machinery but I believe that misses the point. This image communicates psychological dread, organized demonic invasion, overwhelming force, hybrid corruption.

This is anti-creation imagery – twisted forms of what God made. This is what sin does. It distorts what is good.

E. Their King: Abaddon / Apollyon (v.11)

Revelation 9:11 LSB

11 They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon.

Same name different languages, it means “Destroyer”.

Prov. 30:27 says that locusts have no king. (These do)

This is structured demonic hierarchy. This is a highly organized attack, it’s effectiveness due to its victims not even knowing that they are being attacked. This are oblivious… because they are blind.

Biblical Pattern:

2 Corinthians 4:4 – “the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers”

Ephesians 6:12 – Our struggle is not against flesh and blood

Luke 8:12 – Satan takes away the word so they may not believe

The power of deception is greatest when it goes undetected. Humanity is unaware not because it lacks information but because it loves darkness:

John 3:19 LSB

19 “And this is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.

Spiritual warfare is most dangerous when Christians stop interpreting reality through Scripture and start interpreting it through headlines.

F. The First Woe Ends

Revelation 9:12 LSB

12 One woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things.

Takeaways

Demonic activity is real

The Bible does not sanitize spiritual warfare

God is sovereign

The key is given

The duration is limited

The targets are restricted

The sealed are protected

Revelation 7 matters here

Spiritual torment is a form of judgment

Blindness, despair, deception – these are not neutral conditions

The real horror is not the locusts

It is what happens when people prefer darkness

IV. Exposition of the Sixth Trumpet (9:13–21)

A. The Voice from the Golden Altar

Revelation 9:13 LSB

13 Then the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,

This is significant this is the altar of incense which we talked about in the previous chapter:

Revelation 8:3–5 LSB

3 And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense went up with the prayers of the saints, out of the angel’s hand, before God. 5 Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

Remember where were the martyrs (Rev 6:9-11)? Under the altar.

What where they crying out? “How long, O Lord”

Now the voice comes from the altar. This judgement is connected to the prayers of God’s people. God is responding to the injustice done to His people

The horns of the altar in the Old Testament symbolized power and refuge (Exod. 30:1–10). But here, instead of refuge, judgment is announced. Mercy rejected becomes judgment revealed.

B. The Four Bound Angels at the Euphrates (vv. 14-15)

Revelation 9:14 LSB

14 one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who have been bound at the great river Euphrates.”

The Euphrates is not random geography. Biblically, it represents:

The eastern boundary of the promised land (Gen. 15:18)

The direction from which invading armies came (Assyria, Babylon)

A symbol of looming threat

When Israel was judged, it often came from beyond the Euphrates.

These angels are “bound.” That language strongly suggests they are fallen angels restrained by God. Good angels are not described as bound.

Look at God’s sovereignty in action in verse:

Revelation 9:15 LSB

15 And the four angels were released, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, so that they would kill a third of mankind.

Not a second early, not a second late. This is history on schedule.

Notice escalation:

4th trumpet: 1/3 of creation

6th trumpet: 1/3 of humanity

C. The Number of the Army (v.16)

Revelation 9:16 LSB

16 And the number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them.

The NIV says:

“The number of mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand…”

Two hundred million.

Whether literal or symbolic, the emphasis is overwhelming magnitude. In apocalyptic literature, massive numbers communicate incalculable force.

The point is not census. The point is inevitability.

This is not a skirmish. This is catastrophic.

D. The Description of the Horses (vv. 17-19)

The imagery becomes even more unnatural:

Revelation 9:17–19 LSB

17 And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who sit on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths come fire and smoke and brimstone. 18 A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which came out of their mouths. 19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents, having heads, and with them they do harm.

Breastplates the color of fire, sapphire, sulfur

Heads like lions

Fire, smoke, sulfur from their mouths

Serpent-like tails with heads

The power is both in their mouths and their tails.

This suggests: Destruction from front and rear. No safe direction.

If the fifth trumpet emphasized torment, the sixth emphasizes lethal destruction.

But again — this is not mere warfare imagery.

It is supernatural judgment imagery. The smoke is a reminder of Sodom and Gomorrah Gen 19

E. The Real Tragedy (vv. 20-21)

The is the theological message of the passage

Revelation 9:20–21 LSB

20 And the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. 21 And they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their sexual immorality nor of their thefts.

Those who survived the torment, the mass death, the devastation still did not repent

Instead they continued:

Worshiping demons

Worshiping idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, wood

Murders

Sorceries

Sexual immorality

Thefts

Notice the order:

Idolatry first.

Behavior flows from worship.

This aligns perfectly with Romans 1:

Exchange truth → idolatry → moral collapse.

Sorceries (φαρμακεία — pharmakeia) can include occult practices and intoxicating deception. Asia Minor was saturated in magic arts (Acts 19).

This is not just individual sin. It is cultural rebellion.

Here is the sobering truth:

Judgment alone does not regenerate hearts.

Pain exposes worship. It does not change it.

Pharaoh is the Old Testament example. The plagues hardened him.

Hebrews 3 warns: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”

Revelation 9 shows what hardening looks like at scale.

Structural Observations

The sixth trumpet mirrors Exodus plagues.

It echoes prophetic invasion imagery (Jeremiah, Joel).

It anticipates final judgment but does not complete it.

It reveals that partial judgment aims at repentance — but rebellion persists.

The horror is not merely death.

It is impenitence.

Theological Weight

This passage forces several truths:

God governs even destructive forces.

Demonic and human rebellion operate under restraint until judgment is unleashed.

Idolatry is the root of societal collapse.

Hardness of heart is itself judgment.

You can survive catastrophe and still not repent. The goal of Revelation is not fear of demons. It is urgency of repentance.

V. Theological Reflections

God’s sovereignty over evil is absolute.

God restrains evil until He does not. Restraint is mercy.

Spiritual warfare is real.

Demonic forces operate, but always under divine sovereignty.

The worst judgment may be spiritual deception.

When people prefer idols to God.

Suffering does not equal repentance.

Only grace produces repentance (Rom. 2:4).

There is a category of torment that exposes false worship.

VI. Eschatological Views

table

Where you stand will determine whether you see these as:

Strictly future

Historically unfolding

Recapitulated cycles

But all views agree:

Spiritual warfare is real.

Human rebellion is persistent.

God’s sovereignty is absolute.

VII. Application

Do not minimize spiritual warfare.

Our battle is not against flesh and blood (Eph. 6:12).

Do not fear demonic power.

It operates on a leash.

Examine your repentance.

Judgment does not soften everyone. Grace does.

Guard against idolatry.

Modern idols do not look like statues.

They look like autonomy, comfort, success, power.

Pray for hardened hearts.

The most terrifying line in the chapter is: “They did not repent.”

The aim of Revelation is not speculation.

It is perseverance.

And this chapter presses a hard truth:

If your heart is tender now, thank God.

Because hardness is judgment.