Revelation 9

1 Then the fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star [a celestial body] that had fallen [to collapse] from heaven [the sky and God’s home] to earth [the soil and ground], and it was given [to bestow or grant] the key [a symbol of authority] to the pit [a deep hole] of the Abyss [a deep, seemingly bottomless pit]. word study 2 The star [a heavenly body] opened [unlocked, made accessible] the pit [a deep, seemingly bottomless hole, the abyss] of the Abyss [the underworld, a place of darkness and chaos], and smoke [a visible sign of God’s judgment] rose out of it like the smoke [a symbol of God’s presence] of a great furnace [a large oven, a fiery kiln], and the sun [the source of light and life] and the air [the atmosphere, the breath of life] were darkened [made less visible, obscured] by the smoke [a cloud of darkness] from the pit [the abyss, a place of darkness]. word study 3 And out of the smoke [rising from the pit], locusts [insects that devour vegetation] descended on the earth [the land, the material world], and they were given power [authority to act, freedom to exercise] like that of the scorpions [small but dangerous insects with a painful sting] of the earth [the globe, the earthly realm]. word study 4 They were told [instructed, commanded] not to harm [do wrong to, injure] the grass [herbage, vegetation] of the earth [soil, ground] or any plant [green thing] or tree [living growth], but only those who did not have [possess, lack] the seal [mark, sign] of God [the Almighty, Creator] on their foreheads [brows, minds]. word study 5 The locusts [like a swarm of destructive insects] were not given power [authority or permission] to kill [destroy or take life] them, but only [exclusively] to torment [inflict severe pain or distress] them for five [a specific number of] months, and their torment [suffering or affliction] was like [similar to] the stinging [painful wound] of a scorpion [a small but dangerous insect]. word study 6 In those days [a period of great tribulation] men [human beings, people] will seek [look for, search out] death [physical or spiritual, the end of life] and will not find [discover, come across] it; they will long [yearn, have a strong desire] to die [stop living, pass away], but death [the end of life, separation from God] will escape [flee, run away] them. word study 7 And the locusts [like war-horses, resembling horses prepared for battle] looked like horses [large animals used for riding and transportation] prepared for battle [war, a series of conflicts], with something like [resembling, similar in appearance] crowns [wreaths or garlands given as a prize or symbol of honor] of gold [a valuable, yellow metal] on their heads [the upper part of the body], and faces [the countenance, a person’s presence or appearance] like the faces [the countenance, a person’s presence or appearance] of men [human beings, people]. word study 8 They had hair [like women’s, long and flowing] like that of women [females, feminine nature], and teeth [strong and sharp] like those of lions [wild and fierce, powerful predators]. word study 9 They also had thoraxes [like armor plating] like breastplates [habbergions, protective coverings] of iron [made of strong metal], and the sound [noise, voice] of their wings was like the roar [loud noise] of many [a large number of] horses and chariots [vehicles with wheels] rushing [running swiftly] into battle [war, conflict]. word study 10 They had tails [with pointed tips, like scorpions] with stingers [sharp points, kendra] like scorpions, which had the power [authority] to injure [harm] people for five months [a period of time]. word study 11 They were ruled by a king [the supreme ruler, sovereign], the angel [messenger, heavenly being] of the Abyss [the deep, bottomless pit, underworld]. His name [character, authority] in Hebrew [the Jewish language] is Abaddon [the destroyer, devastator], and in Greek [the Hellenic language] it is Apollyon [the destroyer, one who brings ruin]. word study 12 The first woe [expression of grief or sorrow] has passed [gone away, departed]. Behold [see, take notice], two [a pair] woes [expressions of sorrow, calamities] are still [ongoing] to follow [come after, occur later, after these things, hereafter]. word study 13 Then the sixth [sixth in a series of seven] angel [messenger of God, heavenly being] sounded [blew] his trumpet, and I heard [listened and understood] a voice [sound, noise] from the four horns [symbols of strength and power] of the golden [made of gold, precious and valuable] altar [table for offering sacrifices] before [in the presence of] God [the one true deity, Creator of all] word study 14 saying [speaking, proclaiming] to the sixth angel [messenger, heavenly being] with the trumpet [a musical instrument used in war and worship], “Release [loose, untie, set free] the four [a specific number, a group of four] angels [messengers, heavenly beings] who are bound [tied, fastened, restricted] at the great [large, intense, significant] river Euphrates [a major river in Asia, a geographical location].” word study 15 So the four [a specific group of] angels [messengers of God] who had been prepared [made ready] for this hour [a specific time] and day [a 24-hour period] and month [a period of time] and year [a cycle of time] were released [loosed] to kill [destroy] a third of mankind [human beings]. word study 16 And the number [quantity, multitude] of mounted troops [armies of horsemen, cavalry] was two hundred million [twice ten thousand times ten thousand, a myriad of myriads]; I heard [listened to, understood] their number [amount, count]. word study 17 Now the horses [like those in a vision, as I saw them] and riders in my vision looked like this: The riders had breastplates [of fiery red, dark blue, and yellow] the colors of fire, sapphire [a deep blue colour], and sulfur [signifying divine wrath]. The heads of the horses were like [as fierce as] the heads of lions [powerful and terrifying creatures], and out of their mouths proceeded fire [purifying and destructive], smoke [a sign of God’s presence], and sulfur [brimstone, a burning stone]. word study 18 A third [one-third, a significant portion] of mankind [human beings, people] was killed [destroyed, slain] by the three [a specific number, a trilogy] plagues [blows, wounds] of fire [flames, divine judgment], smoke [rising vapor, a sign from God], and sulfur [brimstone, a burning stone] that proceeded [came out, flowed] from their mouths [the source of speech, the opening of the mouth]. word study 19 For the power [authority, ability to act] of the horses was in their mouths [the source of their speech and communication] and in their tails [the back part of their body, used for balance and movement]; indeed, their tails were like [similar in appearance to] snakes [serpents, symbolizing sly cunning or malice], having heads [a leader or a source] with which to inflict [to cause harm or pain, to do wrong] harm [to act unjustly or unrighteously]. word study 20 Now the rest [remaining, leftover] of mankind [human beings, people] who were not killed [slain, destroyed] by these plagues [blows, wounds] still did not repent [change their mind, turn away] of the works [deeds, actions] of their hands [power, ability]. They did not stop worshiping [honoring, revering] demons [evil spirits, unclean beings] and idols [false gods, images] of gold [precious metal], silver [valuable resource], bronze [copper-tin alloy], stone [rock, mineral], and wood [natural material], which [things] cannot see or hear or walk. word study 21 Furthermore, they did not repent [change their minds, turn away from sin] of their murder [killing, taking of human life], sorcery [magic, use of spells], sexual immorality [fornication, evil desires of the flesh], and theft [stealing, taking what is not theirs]. word study