Revelation 9–Woe! Woe! The Fifth and Sixth Trumpets

Revelation 9--Woe! Woe! The Fifth and Sixth Trumpets

Ronda

7 Oct, 2023

Principles of Interpretation: There are patterns to Revelation which should be considered when trying to understand it. One pattern is that each new section is introduced by a scene from the temple. There is significance to these introductions. Do not ignore them. They are a key to understanding the section. Another pattern is that the book is written in symbolic language. The King James Version translates verse 1 as “he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:” To signify is to show in signs, i.e., symbols. Those symbols are based in the rest of the Bible, both Old and New Testament. As such, look to the rest of the Bible to interpret Revelation rather than using Revelation to interpret the rest of the Bible. This also means that you need to let the Bible interpret itself rather than attempting to have it fit into today’s headlines. In short, do not treat Revelation as separate from the rest of the Bible. Instead, expect that the events described in Revelation have been presented in other parts of the Bible. A third pattern in Revelation is the idea of judgement. There are courtroom scenes and wrath and complaints about God not bringing justice. In fact, humans are not the only ones under judgment. God Himself is on trial, and the repeated verdict is that God is just, holy, and worthy. From the beginning claim that this is the Revelation of Jesus to the promise in the last chapter that we shall see God’s face, Revelation is an examination of who our Creator is and whether He is worthy of our loyalty.

Disclaimer: There are four basic methodologies used to interpret the book of Revelation in modern society: futurism, historicism, idealism, and preterism. Many modern churches have embraced the idea of the secret rapture, which is a form of futurism. On the other hand, some churches say that Revelation deals solely with events that were happening in the apostolic era. This is called preterism. Other churches teach that Revelation does not describe any specific time period. Instead, the symbols are philosophical and/or spiritual ideas. The series of studies that I am posting is based on historicism, which says that the Bible teaches that Revelation begins with the time of John and describes the interactions of the church with a hostile world throughout history culminating in the final future eradication of sin from the universe. This view denies a secret rapture. I do not want you to be in confusion about the basic premises of this series of lessons. If you disagree with the historicist viewpoint, please study for yourself to be certain that the interpretations that you have been told by others and simply accepted make sense with the whole Bible. As you study, first ask for guidance from the Holy Spirit; then study the verses, and let the Bible interpret itself. Even if you disagree with my comments, you may find the verses and background information that I provide useful. Finally, I want to emphasize that I myself am still studying Revelation and my understanding is deepening each time I open the book and read. Revelation is a distillation of the whole Bible; as such, the limited space of this blog and my limited understanding means that these lessons are not nearly as in-depth as they could (and maybe should) be.

References: See the end of this post for sources and references.

INTRODUCTION–The last verse of Revelation 8 has an interlude in the middle of the seven trumpets where the world is warned that they are about to receive some really bade stuff.

Revelation 8:13

(13)  Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”

  • This is an interlude between the first four trumpets and the last three trumpets.
  • Eagle crying/flying directly overhead—This is a symbol of either judgment from God or extreme amounts of death (or both).  There is an idea of a battle that results in dead bodies where the birds of prey will attack, and the scavengers will eat.
    • Some versions of the Bible say angel or messenger instead of eagle for this verse. The original word is /aetos/, which is translated as eagle in Revelation although the ESV translates it as vulture in some places.Matthew 24:28  “Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”Deuteronomy 28:49  The LORD will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, swooping down like the eagle, a nation whose language you do not understand,Hosea 8:1  Set the trumpet to your lips! One like a vulture is over the house of the LORD, because they have transgressed my covenant and rebelled against my law.
    • Habakkuk 1:8  Their horses are swifter than leopards, more fierce than the evening wolves; their horsemen press proudly on. Their horsemen come from afar; they fly like an eagle swift to devour.
  • A loud voice implies a widespread message.
  • There are three Woes because of the next three trumpets.  One woe for each trumpet.  Bad things are about to happen for one group of people.
  • To the inhabitants of the earth—These are not God’s people.  They are the people who have chosen to follow the ways of earth instead of heaven, i.e. followers of the earth beast and his image.  In other words, we do not want to be an earthly inhabitant.  We want to be citizens of heaven.
  • The 3rd and 4th trumpets dealt with spiritual issues, while the 5th and 6th trumpets will be more militaristic and political, according to some interpretations.

INTRODUCTION TO CHAPTER 9:  The fifth trumpet has been interpreted in two different ways by the theologians of the Adventist church.  One way is that this represents the “political and military impact of militant non-Christians on apostate Christendom.”  In other words, the spread of Islam limited the damage that the papacy was able to do to those it was persecuting.  In having a new enemy, the papacy’s attention was taken away from hunting down and killing God’s workers and refocused onto fighting Muslims.  In addition, many of God’s people found refuge from persecution in Muslim territory.  The other interpretation is that this represents the rise of secularism and atheism as a result of the age of enlightenment.  “The fifth trumpet uses the imagery of a demonic attack to demonstrate Satan’s tormenting power in the lives of the wicked (vv. 5-6), but also his helplessness against the faithful people of God (v. 4).  This section may represent the reality and spiritual consequences of the secularism and evolutionary skepticism that have become increasingly dominant since the 19th century” (Andrews Study Bible).  I tend to lean towards the latter interpretation simply because it seems to use more Biblical sources to support it.  However, my resources to date have been limited, so I have not studied enough to firmly choose one side over the other.

Revelation 9:1-2

(1)  And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. (2)  He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft.

  • Star fallen from heaven to earth—Many times in the Bible, a star is a reference to angels.  The star fallen from heaven is Satan.
    • Revelation 8:10-11  (10)  The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.  (11)  The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter.
    • Revelation 12:7-9  (7)  Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, (8)  but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. (9)  And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
    • Luke 10:18   And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
    • Ephesians 2:2  (2)  in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
  • Key to the abyss—The bottomless pit is the same as the abyss.  The abyss is spoken of in conjunction with Satan and demons.  When they are in the abyss, they seem to be limited/chained, but when they are out of the abyss, it is bad news for humans.  Thus, the limits that God has imposed upon demons seem to have been loosened in this trumpet.
    • Luke 8:30-31  (30)  Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” for many demons had entered him.  (31)  And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss.
    • Revelation 11:7  (7)  And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them,
    • 2 Peter 2:4  (4)  For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment;
  • Smoke of a great furnace from the abyss—There is smoke of a furnace associated with the judgement on Sodom, but there is also smoke like from a kiln associated with God’s presence on Mount Sinai.  The fact that the smoke in the fifth trumpet darkens the sun and air would indicate that this is not the presence of God, but rather the presence of evil.
    • Genesis 19:28  (28)  And he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the valley, and he looked and, behold, the smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace.
    • Exodus 19:18  (18)  Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly.
  • Sun and air darkened—The activities associated with this trumpet seem to darken the world just as the locust plague of Egypt darkened the land..
    • Exodus 10:14-15  (14)  The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled on the whole country of Egypt, such a dense swarm of locusts as had never been before, nor ever will be again.  (15)  They covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened, and they ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, through all the land of Egypt.

Revelation 9:3-6

(3)  Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. (4)  They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.(5)  They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone. (6)  And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.

  • Locusts on the earth—If you do a search for the term locusts, most verses use it to show the vast number of soldiers in a military action.
    • Judges 7:12  (12)  And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the people of the East lay along the valley like locusts in abundance, and their camels were without number, as the sand that is on the seashore in abundance.
    • Nahum 3:15-17  (15)  There will the fire devour you; the sword will cut you off. It will devour you like the locust. Multiply yourselves like the locust; multiply like the grasshopper!  (16)  You increased your merchants more than the stars of the heavens. The locust spreads its wings and flies away.  (17)  Your princes are like grasshoppers, your scribes like clouds of locusts settling on the fences in a day of cold— when the sun rises, they fly away; no one knows where they are.
  • Power of scorpions on the earth-Scorpions are a symbol of demons, and a serpent is the symbol of Satan.  We read Luke 10 without taking in the context of the idea of having power over scorpions and serpents.  I have heard Christians say that this means that the poison from these animals would not harm disciples, but that does not fit the context.  The 72 are praising God because they could cast out demons.  Jesus speaks of Satan’s fall from heaven and then tells them that He has given them authority to step on serpents and scorpions.  The context shows that Jesus is speaking of demons.
    • Luke 10:17-20  (17)  The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” (18)  And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. (19)  Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.  (20)  Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
  • Don’t harm grass, trees, or green plants—“Normal locusts harm vegetation;  these attack people” (Andrews Study Bible).  This is one place where the fifth trumpet differs from the Exodus plague imagery.  In the Exodus plague, the locusts devoured everything.  This plague does not affect vegetation.
  • Harm those without seal of God—The Bible gives examples where those who are sealed to God are exempt from the judgments that come upon those who reject God.
    • The seal of God is only in people’s foreheads because God only wants willing service.  This represents that people follow God out of choice.
    • Ezekiel 9:4  (4)  And the LORD said to him, “Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.”
    • Exodus 12:23  (23)  For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you.
    • Romans 8:35-39  (35)  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?  (36)  As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”  (37)  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  (38)  For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, (39)  nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
  • Torment them for five months
    • Here is one of the places where Adventist theologians are in disagreement. 
    • Those who believe that the fifth trumpet are speaking of Islam’s conquering armies use the day for a year principle for five months.  In this case, the time period is 150 years.  “Othman, the first king of the Muslims, made his initial attack against the Eastern Roman Empire in 1299 A.D., July 27 of that year (see Edward Gibbons, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol. 5, chapter 64). From that date the Ottoman Turks did ‘torment’ the Eastern Roman Empire for 150 years without complete victory until 1449” (Unlocking Revelation).
    • Those who believe that this is speaking of Satan’s spiritual attack through secularism and atheism point to the five months as being the lifespan of locusts or the “duration of the flood (Gen. 7:24, 8:3)” (Andrews Study Bible).
  • Not kill them/Torment like sting of scorpion
    • Islam interpretation:  there was no complete victory during the specified time.
    • Secularism interpretation:  This is psychological torture rather than physical torture.  By denying God, people open themselves up to the torment of demons who give them no peace.  Their empty lives are a torment.
  • Long for death but no death
    • Think of the torment of Job where Satan tormented but was not allowed to kill.  Job longed for death, but it would not come.
    • Jeremiah 8:2-3  (2)  And they shall be spread before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and served, which they have gone after, and which they have sought and worshiped. And they shall not be gathered or buried. They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground.  (3)  Death shall be preferred to life by all the remnant that remains of this evil family in all the places where I have driven them, declares the LORD of hosts.

Revelation 9:7-10

(7)  In appearance the locusts were like horses prepared for battle: on their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces, (8)  their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth; (9)  they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle. (10)  They have tails and stings like scorpions, and their power to hurt people for five months is in their tails.

  • This is a direct reference to Joel’s prediction of the day of the LORD and provides some support for the interpretation of the battles of Islam being foretold in this trumpet.
    • Joel 2:1-11  (1)  Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near, (2)  a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations.  (3)  Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them.  (4)  Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, and like war horses they run.  (5)  As with the rumbling of chariots, they leap on the tops of the mountains, like the crackling of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a powerful army drawn up for battle.  (6)  Before them peoples are in anguish; all faces grow pale.  (7)  Like warriors they charge; like soldiers they scale the wall. They march each on his way; they do not swerve from their paths.  (8)  They do not jostle one another; each marches in his path; they burst through the weapons and are not halted.  (9)  They leap upon the city, they run upon the walls, they climb up into the houses, they enter through the windows like a thief.  (10)  The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.  (11)  The LORD utters his voice before his army, for his camp is exceedingly great; he who executes his word is powerful. For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome; who can endure it?
  • Locusts look like battle horses
    • Jeremiah 51:27  (27)  “Set up a standard on the earth; blow the trumpet among the nations; prepare the nations for war against her; summon against her the kingdoms, Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz; appoint a marshal against her; bring up horses like bristling locusts.
  • I did not find any satisfactory interpretations for this description.  I will revise this section when I learn more.
    • Crowns of gold on heads—victors crowns
    • Human faces—not angelic
    • Women’s hair—?
    • Lions’ teeth—fierce and strong
    • Iron breastplates—?
    • Wings make noise like many chariots rushing into battle—?
  • Tails and stings like scorpions—The Bible calls false prophets “tails.”  The lies of Satan convinced a third of the angels to rebel against God.  Thus, the tails and stings have to do with false teachings.  This provides support for the atheism interpretation.
    • Isaiah 9:14-15  (14)  So the LORD cut off from Israel head and tail, palm branch and reed in one day—(15)  the elder and honored man is the head, and the prophet who teaches lies is the tail;
    • Revelation 12:3-4  (3)  And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems.  (4)  His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it.

Revelation 9:11-12

(11)  They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon. (12)  The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come.

  • The King of locusts is the angel of the abyss.
  • The Hebrew name of the leader is Abaddon, which means destruction
  • The Greek name of leader is Apollyon, which means destroyer

SUMMARY OF 5th TRUMPET: This woe is directed against the enemies of God, not His people.  Satan is behind it.  It is limited.  Those who do not serve God will be tormented.  Their king is called the destroyer.  Does this represent Islam tormenting the papacy, which had made itself the enemy of God?  Does this represent the false teachings of secularism and atheism that have caused immeasurable harm to people so that they have no peace and strive to escape the meaninglessness of their lives?  I’m still trying to figure this one out.  However, since the sixth trumpet is the time right before Jesus comes, it would make sense for the fifth trumpet to cover the time period during the post reformation period and the beginning of the supremacy of belief systems that deny God. This also matches well with the church of Sardis (approximately 1565-1740), which had a reputation for being alive when it was dead spiritually.

 The Sixth Trumpet

Revelation 9:13-15

(13)  Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God, (14)  saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” (15)  So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, were released to kill a third of mankind.

  • Voice from four horns of the golden altar—This is the altar of incense in the Holy Place.  There is still intercession happening.  The wicked still have time to repent.
  • Release the four angels bound in Euphrates River
    • The Euphrates River is the boundary between the people of God and their enemies.  The enemies come from beyond the Euphrates as if the flooding river is overflowing into the land.
      • Jeremiah 46:10  (10)  That day is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, a day of vengeance, to avenge himself on his foes. The sword shall devour and be sated and drink its fill of their blood. For the Lord GOD of hosts holds a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.
      • Isaiah 8:7-8  (7)  therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks, (8)  and it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, reaching even to the neck, and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.”
    • Interpretation based on Islam being the trumpet:  “For 150 years the Eastern Empire, right up to the gates of Constantinople, was tormented by the Muslim armies. Now the conquest is to be complete. The four angels from the Euphrates may refer to the four Muslim provinces of Aleppo, Iconium, Damascus, and Baghdad.”
    • Alternate Interpretation:  This is the last time period before Jesus’ coming.  The forces are gathering for the Battle of Armageddon.  Evil is flooding over the world.  People are making choices for or against God.  The logic for this interpretation comes from the similarities between Revelation 7, 9, and 16.  In addition, the next trumpet (7th trumpet) announces that this world now belongs to God, which seems to indicate that the sixth trumpet would be the time period before Jesus’ Second Coming.
      • Four Angels—Revelation 7:1-4  (1)  After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree. (2)  Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, (3)  saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” (4)  And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:
      • Euphrates River—Revelation 16:12-16  (12)  The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, to prepare the way for the kings from the east. (13)  And I saw, coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs. (14)  For they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty. (15)  (“Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”) (16)  And they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.
      • Revelation 11:15  (15)  Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”
  • Prepared for this hour, day, month and year
    • Interpretation based on Islam being the trumpet:  “At the conclusion of the 150 years of torment in 1449, another time period would mark the conquest of the Turks against the eastern Empire. One “year” is equal to 360 years in Bible prophecy. One “month” is thirty years. One “day” is one year. One “hour” is 15 days. That gives us a total of 391 years and fifteen days.”  “In exact fulfillment of this prophecy, the Emperor of Constantinople yielded the Empire’s independence to the Turks at the conclusion of the 150 years of torment in 1449. Then, the Ottoman Muslim Empire continued its reign for 391 years. Bible students of the 1800s figured the prophecy from Gibbon’s beginning date of the 150- year period of July 27, 1299. Moving forward 150 years they came to July 27, 1449. Moving forward in time another 391 years and 15 days brought them to August 11, 1840. It is here that they expected to witness the fall of the Ottoman Empire. Just as they had figured, after a 391-year rule, on August 11, 1840, the Muslim Empire surrendered its independence to the European nations, just as the Eastern Roman Empire surrendered to its power 391 years earlier.
    • Alternate interpretation:  This is the divinely appointed time to allow Satan freedom to act without interference.
  • Kill 1/3 of mankind—In verse 15, it says that the angels kill, but when more information is given in the next three verses, it becomes obvious that it is the demons that kill.  This is a judgment from God.  Frequently, in the Old Testament, God will claim responsibility for killing that happens through human means.  This is an escalation of the fifth trumpet. In the fifth trumpet, the demons could only wound and make people wish for death, but in the sixth trumpet, they will cause people to die.

Revelation 9:16-19

(16)  The number of mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand; I heard their number. (17)  And this is how I saw the horses in my vision and those who rode them: they wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur, and the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths. (18)  By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming 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 with heads, and by means of them they wound.

  • Mounted troops—Horses are a symbol for war.
  • Number = 2(10,000) x ten thousand:  200 million enemies of God versus 144,000 chosen of God (Revelation 7:4).  There will many on Satan’s side against the smaller portion of God’s followers, but there is no need to worry because God is with us.
  • The riders wore breastplates the color of fire, sapphire, and sulfur—the color of the breastplates is the color of the fire, smoke, and sulfur coming out of the lion heads of the horses.  Fire, smoke, and sulfur were a method of bringing judgment in the Old Testament.
    • Psalms 11:5-6  (5)  The LORD tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.  (6)  Let him rain coals on the wicked; fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
    • Ezekiel 38:21-22  (21)  I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Lord GOD. Every man’s sword will be against his brother.  (22)  With pestilence and bloodshed I will enter into judgment with him, and I will rain upon him and his hordes and the many peoples who are with him torrential rains and hailstones, fire and sulfur.
    • Luke 17:28-30  (28)  Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, (29)  but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all—(30)  so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.
    • These verses indicate that the ones who receive the 1/3 of mankind who are killed are those who have rejected God.  Ezekiel says that every man’s sword will be against his brother while speaking of God raining down fire, sulfur, rains, and hail.  It seems that the results of demonic activity will kill 1/3 (a portion) of the wicked, but God will protect His own.
  • Tails = serpents with heads:  In the fifth trumpet, the tails were those of scorpions, which are a symbol of demons.  In the sixth trumpet, the tails have strengthened so that they now symbolize Satan himself.  The intensity of the tails’ actions has increased.
  • Interpretation based on Islam being the trumpet:  “The army of horsemen brought to view in the sixth trumpet conduct their warfare with fire and smoke and brimstone, which is sulphur. The Muslim armies were the first to use gunpowder and firearms in war. It is likely that this is what John was trying to describe from what he saw in vision.”
  • Alternate Interpretation:
    • The horses have power in mouth and tail—The mouth is where words come from.  Thus, the horses’ power comes from the words that they speak.  The tail is usually a symbol of false prophesy.  This seems to say that the horses’ attack is through lies, especially lies about God.  The final battle will be spiritual, not physical or a military action.  This is a battle for the minds and hearts of people.  In Revelation 16 and 19, we see a contrast between the lies of the demonic spirits and the truth of the word of God, i.e. Jesus.  The battle lines are being drawn between the kings of the world and Jesus.  Jesus wins.
      • Revelation 16:13-14  (13)  And I saw, coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs.  (14)  For they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.
      • Revelation 19:15, 21  (15)  From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.  (21)  And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.
    • Satan’s activities increase, but so do God’s efforts to reach the people of the world.  This is the time of the loudest cry of the 3 angels’ messages to the world.  (Revelation 14:6-13)

Revelation 9:20-21

(20)  The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, (21)  nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

  • Those not killed by the plagues do not repent—The last days before Jesus’ second coming will be full of increased demonic activity.  The survivors of the massacre who do not have the seal of God will be helpless to resist these evil ones.  These people could have repented and been sealed to God, but they chose their sins over obedience to God.
  • There is a contrast between the worship of material treasures and the abuse of living beings.
  • List of sins:
    • Worshiping demons, i.e. worshipping blind-deaf-lame idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood.  This should remind us of the last days of physical Babylon where they took the God’s that had been created for the worship of Yahweh in His temple and toasted false gods with them.  Judgment came that night when Babylon fell to Medio-Persia.
      • Daniel 5:23  (23)  but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored.
    • Fruits of Worshipping Demons
      • Murders
      • Sorceries
      • sexual immorality
      • theft

SUMMARY:  Since the three angels began sounding their message at about the same time that the Ottoman Empire fell (around 1840), there seems to be an unbroken sequence between historical events until the second coming according to the Islamic interpretation of the fifth and sixth trumpets.  However, the seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:15-19) seems to indicate an immediacy to Christ’s coming.  Instead, there has been increased activity by Satan in the years following the beginning of the sounding of the three angels’ messages that is more in line with the interpretation that we are living in the sixth trumpet right now.  There are increasing quantities of the sins listed.  Murders, sexual immorality, and theft have been growing intensifying constantly.  Interestingly, sorceries, such as witchcraft, vampires and mythological beasts, ancient gods and goddesses, ghosts, etc., have become the staple of movies, books, games, and social discussions.  Modern society seems to believe in sorcery more than ever while denying the God of heaven.  Thus, I believe that the alternate interpretation fits in better with the overall flow of Revelation, the Bible as a whole, and history.  However, with my limited resources, there may be something that I have overlooked.

References:

  • Andrews Study Bible–In some lessons, I refer to study comments from this Bible.
  • Plain Revelation–A book by Ranko Stefanovic that summarizes the meaning of various sections of Revelation
  • Revelation of Jesus Christ–A book by Ranko Stefonovic that comments on each verse of Revelation.
  • Salvation in Signs and Symbols–a series of shows where two pastors and two others study through the books of Revelation and Daniel. These programs can be accessed at 3abnplus.tv . Scroll down to 3ABN Dare to Dream Network and choose Salvation in Signs and Symbols from the list there.
  • Seventh-Day Adventist Bible Commentary (Volume 7) (Copywrite 1957)–This is the old green set of commentaries, not the new commentary series that is in the process of being published and should be released after 2022. (Boy, I would love to get my hands on that set when it comes out!)
  • Table Talk–A series of shows where four pastors discuss various topics. These programs can be accessed at tabletalk.online . Season 4 focuses on Revelation.
  • Unlocking Revelation–A series of pamphlets that can be downloaded for free from lightbearers.org and clicking on Resources