REVELATION 9 (PART 1)
VERSES 1 - 12
VERSES 1 - 12
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. (King James Version, public domain)
COMMENTARY
When we finished chapter 7, we beheld an angel flying throughout the skies proclaiming in a loud voice, "Woe, woe, woe" to the unbelievers on earth. The first "woe" appears to also be spiritual beings: the "locusts" that have been released from "the bottomless pit" are not limited by walls, but can attack their prey no matter where they hide.
I read somewhere that the Jew is taught to view all things from a spiritual perspective, doing and seeing things with sacred intentionality. Mature Christians do likewise. Therefore, let us see the symbolic meaning of this first "woe":
The star that fell from Heaven refers to that apostate leader of the third trumpet. Under the fifth trumpet, the apostasy grows. The leader is given a "key" to unlock the bottomless pit, unleashing a strong delusion, which blots out "The Light" (Jesus) from before men's eyes or mind. And they were given power to sweep across the land devouring those who are not sealed by God into an occultic belief system. Satan is "the prince of the powers of the air" reference Ephesians 2:2: "Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." Notice that that "spirit" works in the children of disobedience.
These evil teachings, seances, devil worshiping, etc. will so distress the populace that they will seek death, but death will elude them. After all, Jesus is our "hope". Without hope, all is lost: all vision for the future, all the reason to try to do better, or to be better, our purpose for living, nothing is left. And they will be tormented: I consider when I visited a mental hospital that had patients with multiple personalities. These people were indeed tormented. Or consider someone on a "bad trip" after taking street drugs.
The description of the "locusts"
1) like unto horses prepared unto battle: symbolizing rapid progress and little resistance
2) upon their heads were crowns like gold: symbolizing apostasy
3) faces as faces of men; hair as hair of women; teeth as teeth of lions: symbolizes intelligence, seductiveness, then destruction
4) breastplates as it were breastplates of iron: Christians are directed to put on the "full armour of God" and the breastplate guards the heart, the conscience, that inner voice which is The Holy Spirit. These "breastplates" keep all of that out, rendering all impervious to The Truth.
5) wings whose sound is as that of myriads of chariots rushing to battle: symbolizes the swiftness they conquer those who have rejected The Truth and have had pleasure in unrighteousness.
I read somewhere that the Jew is taught to view all things from a spiritual perspective, doing and seeing things with sacred intentionality. Mature Christians do likewise. Therefore, let us see the symbolic meaning of this first "woe":
The star that fell from Heaven refers to that apostate leader of the third trumpet. Under the fifth trumpet, the apostasy grows. The leader is given a "key" to unlock the bottomless pit, unleashing a strong delusion, which blots out "The Light" (Jesus) from before men's eyes or mind. And they were given power to sweep across the land devouring those who are not sealed by God into an occultic belief system. Satan is "the prince of the powers of the air" reference Ephesians 2:2: "Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." Notice that that "spirit" works in the children of disobedience.
These evil teachings, seances, devil worshiping, etc. will so distress the populace that they will seek death, but death will elude them. After all, Jesus is our "hope". Without hope, all is lost: all vision for the future, all the reason to try to do better, or to be better, our purpose for living, nothing is left. And they will be tormented: I consider when I visited a mental hospital that had patients with multiple personalities. These people were indeed tormented. Or consider someone on a "bad trip" after taking street drugs.
The description of the "locusts"
1) like unto horses prepared unto battle: symbolizing rapid progress and little resistance
2) upon their heads were crowns like gold: symbolizing apostasy
3) faces as faces of men; hair as hair of women; teeth as teeth of lions: symbolizes intelligence, seductiveness, then destruction
4) breastplates as it were breastplates of iron: Christians are directed to put on the "full armour of God" and the breastplate guards the heart, the conscience, that inner voice which is The Holy Spirit. These "breastplates" keep all of that out, rendering all impervious to The Truth.
5) wings whose sound is as that of myriads of chariots rushing to battle: symbolizes the swiftness they conquer those who have rejected The Truth and have had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Understanding the symbolic translations for this text should, in no way, detract from what is written. I believe the literal translation of the text, too. Do you?
Dear friend, now is a good time to accept the priceless gift of salvation! Please click this link to go to our "Pathway to Salvation" page: http://omaswisdom.blogspot.com/p/path-to-salvation.html
If this ministry is a blessing to you, we encourage you to leave your thoughts in a comment. We would love to hear from you.
Dear friend, now is a good time to accept the priceless gift of salvation! Please click this link to go to our "Pathway to Salvation" page: http://omaswisdom.blogspot.com/p/path-to-salvation.html
If this ministry is a blessing to you, we encourage you to leave your thoughts in a comment. We would love to hear from you.
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