Revelation 9:15King James Version (KJV)
And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.
Revelation 9
V 1–12: SEVEN TRUMPETS—FIFTH TRUMPET The fifth trumpet fulfils the first of the three woes that the flying angel has just announced. Here we see ‘a star fallen from heaven’ (Satan) who opens the bottomless pit from which smoke rises from its great furnace and darkens the air. Horrible locusts appear from that smoke but are commanded not to harm the vegetation, but only those whom God has not sealed on their foreheads. They are permitted to torment, but not to kill, for five months. The tormented will wish to die but cannot. The locusts, for whom a graphic and horrific description is given, have as king the ‘angel of the bottomless pit’ named Abbadon, in Hebrew, or Apollyon, in Greek. Here is direct satanic activity on earth. Two more woes are to come. V 13–21: SEVEN TRUMPETS—SIXTH TRUMPET The sixth angel is told to release the four angels at the River Euphrates who then kill one third of mankind. This is done through two hundred million horsemen, whose frightening appearance is described vividly. Fire, smoke and brimstone, as plagues, lead them to kill the third of mankind. This they do by their mouths and by their serpent-like tails. The remaining two thirds of mankind, however, neither repent of their demon worship, idolatry and materialism, nor of their murders, witchcraft, sexual immorality or thefts. So hardened are they against God that even His horrific judgements do not move them to repentance. This is an alarmingly sad and tragic state to be in.
■ Lev. 26:14–39: This section of curses follows the pattern of the ancient Near Eastern treaties, in that it was much larger in number than the enumerated blessings. The terror would consist of...
■ Apocalyptic Language:
Isaiah 24:1: The eschatological nature of Isaiah’s prophecies in chapters 24—27 and 34—35 have been categorized by most scholars as apocalyptic language, as is found in Daniel...
■ Introduction to the Book of Daniel:
Title. The title of the book comes from the name of its chief character and author.
■ Dan. 9:27: He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: The pronoun he here refers to its nearest antecedent, “the prince that shall come,” or Antichrist, in verse 26. The commencement of...
■ Heb. 2:5–9: If Christ became a Man and partook of death, how can He be superior to the angels? This apparent contradiction is presently answered as reasonable and logical. The writer states that the...
■ Introduction to the Revelation of Jesus Christ:
The English title “Revelation” comes from the first word of the book in Greek. That word is apokalypsis, which means “the unveiling of something...
■ Rev. 1:19: This is the key verse of the book. Revelation has three major sections: (1) the things which thou hast seen—chapter 1, especially the vision of Christ (cf. v. 11—“what thou seest”);...
■ Rev. 3:20–22: In light of the spiritual condition of the Laodiceans described in verses 17, 18, the invitation of verse 20 seems to be evangelistically addressed to individual members of an apostate...
■ Rev. 9:1–3: Chapter 9 describes the first two woes—trumpets five and six. The fifthtrumpet brings a five-month period of torment on the unbelievers of the earth. Thestar is either an angel of God...
■ Rev. 9:13–15: The sixth trumpet results in the death of a third of the surviving unbelievers on the earth. The four bound angels are fallen angels or demons who have been temporarily bound by God....
■ Rev. 16:1: The vials of the wrath of God represent the climax of God’s punishment of sinners during the Tribulation period. No repentance is invited or shown. The emptying of the bowls takes place...
■ Rev. 16:12–16: The sixth vial results in the gathering of the armies of the whole worldtogether in Palestine for the battle ofArmageddon. The river Euphrates, at the northeastern boundary of the...
Testimonial tribulation. The unbelieving world, on the other hand, may oppress God’s people on account of their faithful testimony. Anyone who has no root in himself immediately falls away (Matt 13:21). “In the world,” Jesus said, “you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). For His sake “we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” Nothing—including tribulation, distress, or persecution—can separate the true Christian from the love of God (Rom 8:35-39). So Christians are “patient in tribulation” (12:12). John on the island of Patmos shared “the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance” (Rev 1:9). After Paul had been stoned and left for dead at Lystra he returned exhorting the disciples “to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).
3. The “great tribulation.” Reminiscent of Daniel 12:2, Jesus predicted a “great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be” (Matt 24:21). It includes more intense persecution of God’s people by the anti-Christian forces. To the disciples on the Mount of Olives, Jesus said, “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation, and put you to death; and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake” (Matt 24:9). The period also includes acts of God in pouring out His righteous wrath on the ungodly. “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Matt 24:29). Such manifestations of divine wrath are described in detail by John in Revelation 6-19. Out of “the great tribulation” comes a multitude seen before the throne of the Lamb (Rev 7:14).
On the identity of the people of God in the great tribulation and the time of the rapture theologians differ. Posttribulationists see the Church continuing on earth to the end of the tribulation when the rapture occurs. Midtribulationalists look for the Church to survive the first half of the tribulation when the rapture takes place. Pretribulationalists anticipate the rapture prior to the tribulation so that the people of God on earth are members of the restored Jewish nation.
WATCH: The Apocalypse:
The film is set in 90 AD and concerns Jesus Christ's last surviving disciple, John of Patmos, and his writings and visions of the Apocalypse. Emperor Domitian has declared himself to be God and ruler over heaven and earth. The Christians do not recognize his divinity and face persecution from the Emperor. John has been imprisoned on Patmos, a mining prison, with many others. He writes out messages of his visions and sends them to the church in Asia. They send Irene to make sure John is alive and to confer with him in person. The movie depicts scenes from the Book of Revelation and links them to events happening to the church in Asia.
