1The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss.
Revelation 9 beings with the last three trumpets sounded by the angels. These last three trumpets are also referred to as the three woes. You’ll notice that these three judgments on the world are profoundly different form the the ones that came before, signaling a “ratcheting up” of judgment. As we begin, the fifth angel sounds his trumpet, signaling a star that falls from the sky. Is this a star or a person, because the star is given a key. This key is one that opens the bottomless pit (2 Peter 2:4, Jude 1:6). This pit is where the real awful articles of judgment reside, and this star (angel) is given the rite to open it up onto the world, and the angel is given it for a very specific time and purpose.
2 When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. 3 And out of the smoke locusts came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. 4 They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes. 6 During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.
The pit is opened and what comes out of it is like a locust swarm. Although John calls them locusts, they don’t behave like real locusts do. Locusts tend to avoid man and concentrate on attacking plants. But these locusts are different: they are sent from the abyss to avoid the grass and earth and attack those who do not bear the seal of God on their foreheads. Locusts, in scripture, often act as God’s instrument of judgment (Amos 4:9, 2 Chronicles 7:13). You’ll also notice that their function is not to kill these people, but to aggravate and torture them for a specific amount of time- five months. This is the inescapable judgment of God; death is not an escape for them. It is important to note that God is not gleefully torturing these people. This is the result of a continual turning away, a constant rejection of God. Even in this, there is mercy; God wants these people back, he wants them to return to Him.
7 The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. 8 Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. 9 They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. 10 They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months.
You’ll notice the very strange way these creatures look. They appear to have armor (horses prepared for battle), wore some sort of head armament (crowns), look like people (human faces), long hair (women’s hair), fearsome teeth (lion’s teeth), body armor (breastplates of iron), are loud (wings like thundering horses), and tails (like scorpions). This looks like nothing that has ever been seen on planet earth. You’ll also notice that John isn’t quite sure about it either. Every description is proceeds with “like”, meaning he too is struggling with just what this is. Is it far-reaching technology? Is it a creature from another planet? Whatever it may be, they are released by God on the unbelieving world, tormentors but not killers.
11 They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in Greek is Apollyon (that is, Destroyer). 12 The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come.
The leader of the locusts is revealed. It is the angel who was locked in the abyss. Abandon, or Apollyon, means destruction, torment, and refers to Satan. Ominously, this is just the first woe. As the chapter continues, the angel warns that there are still two more woes to come.
13 The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice coming from the four horns of the golden altar that is before God.
The golden altar represents the prayers of the faithful. The prayers of the faithful are important to the end-times chronology.
14 It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” 15 And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind.
These four angels, bound at the Euphrates, have been given authority and are released. The Euphrates is the boundary to the Promised Land (Genesis 15:17-21) and also the boundary of Rome, which is revived under the AnitChrist. The Euphrates is important because it is associated with first sin (Genesis 1:10-14), the first murder (Genesis 4:16), the first organized revolt against God (Genesis 11:1-9), First war confederation (Genesis 14:1), and first dictatorship (Genesis 10:8-10). Since we are dealing with the AntiChrist and judgment of mankind, it seems fitting that the Euphrates is where these angels, who will unleash the torment on the people, are bound. The angel’s job: to kill a third of mankind. Again, we may look at this and may find it difficult to square this with a loving God. But we must understand that this torment is leveled at those who refuse to believe in God. These angels are to carry out God’s judgment.
16 The number of the mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand. I heard their number. 17 The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur. 18 A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out of their mouths. 19 The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury.
This is an obvious allusion to war, for we get vast numbers of what appear to be troops and vehicles. Whatever is being used as weaponry during these times (gas?) is devastating and dangerous for the world.
20 The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. 21 Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts.
And we see the final bit of irony: the people do not repent. They continue in their wicked ways, not changing or yearning toward God, but falling back to their comfort levels of sin, immorality and theft.