Revelation 10:11

And he said to me, “You must prophesy again about many people, nations, tongues, and kings.”

·        This book of prophecy was not given him merely to gratify his own curiosity, but to be communicated by him to the world (MH)

·        Whatever the content of the scroll, it is connected to John’s command to prophesy to all men. This is not a message just focused to the church. (DG)

·        John’s prophecy speaks of the fate of the entire world, not just one nation, empire or emperor, such as the Roman Empire.  (DG)

Jeremiah 1:9, 10  Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me:  “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.  See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.”

Ezekiel 11:4  Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man!

Revelation 10:10

Then I took the little book out of the angel’s hand and ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.  But when I had eaten it, my stomach became bitter.

·        When this book of prophecy was more thoroughly digested by the apostle, the contents would be bitter; these were things so awful and terrible, that the foresight of them would not be pleasant. (MH)

·        Any effective communicator of God’s Word has experienced both the sweetness and bitterness that is associated with His Word (DG)

Jeremiah 15:16  Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O Lord GOD of hosts.

Ezekiel 2:10  Then he spread it before me; and there was writing on the inside and on the outside, and written on it were lamentations and mourning and woe.

Revelation 10:9

So I went to the angel and said to him, “Give me the little book.”  And he said to me, “Take and eat it; and it will make your stomach bitter, but it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth.”

·        In Ezekiel 3:1-3, the prophet was also commanded to eat a scroll, the revelation of God to Israel. “This figure of eating the book is familiar, and suggests the feeding of the soul on the Word of God.” (Morgan)

·        Any effective communicator of God’s Word has experienced both the sweetness and bitterness that is associated with His Word  (DG)

Jeremiah 15:16  Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O Lord GOD of hosts.

Ezekiel 2:8  But you, son of man, hear what I say to you, do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.

Revelation 10:8

Then the voice which I heard from heaven spoke to me again and said, “Go, take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel who stand son the sea and on the earth.”

·        John is commanded to take the little book from the mighty angel and actually eat it.  (DG)

Ezekiel 2:9  Now when I looked, there was a hand stretched out to me,; and behold, a scroll of a book was in it.

Psalm 96:11  Let the heavens rejoice, and let the be glad; let the sea roar, and all its fullness.

Revelation 10:5-7

The angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised up his hand to heaven and swore by Him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and the things that are in it, the earth and the things that are in it, and the sea and the things that are in it, that there should be delay no longer, but in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, the mystery of God would be finished, as He declared to His servants the prophets.

·        The mighty angel gives a solemn oath declaring that the end is irrevocably set in motion, that there should be delay no longer. There is absolutely no turning back.  (DG)

·        Remember that in Biblical vocabulary, a mystery isn’t something no one knows. A mystery is something no one could know unless it was revealed to him. If you could know it by intuition or personal investigation, it isn’t a mystery, because mysteries must be revealed. Therefore, something can be known and still be a mystery in the Biblical sense, if it would never have been known if it wasn’t revealed.  (DG)

Deuteronomy 32:40  For I raise My hand to heaven, and say, “As I live forever…

Nehemiah 9:6  You alone are the LORD; You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and everything on it, the seas and all that is in them, and You preserve them all.  The host of heaven worships You.

Amos 3:7  Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.

Revelation 10:4

Now when the seven thunders uttered their voices, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, “Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and do not write them.”

·        This relates the same idea of the thunderous voice of God as described in Psalm 29, seven times repeating the phrase the voice of the Lord. (DG)

·        If John is not permitted to tell us what they said, why should he even record the incident? One result of it should be to let us know there are secrets in the prophetic scenario, mysteries that should keep our exposition and prediction humble.  (DG)

a. “This illustrates the principle that while God has revealed much, there are secrets which God has not seen fit to reveal to man at this time.” (Walvoord)

b. “Let us not proceed as though all has been revealed.” (Morris)

Psalm 29:3-9  The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders; the LORD is over many waters, the voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty…..

Daniel 12:4  But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.

Revelation 10:2-3

He had a little book open in his hand;.  And he set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, and cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roars.  When he cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices.

·        His awful voice was echoed by seven thunders, seven solemn and terrible ways of discovering the mind of God (MH)

·        “The contents of the little book are nowhere revealed in Revelation, but they seem to represent in this vision the written authority given to the angel to fulfill his mission.” (Walvoord)

Ezekiel 2:9  Now when I looked, there was a hand stretched out to me; and behold, a scroll of a book was in it.

Jeremiah 25:30  Therefore prophesy against them all these words, and say to them:  “The LORD will roar from on high, and utter His voice from His holy habitation; He will roar mightily against His fold.  He will give a shout, as those who tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.

Revelation 10:1

I saw still another mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud.  And a rainbow was on his head, his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire.

·        These interludes serve a dramatic purpose, but also show mercy in allowing more opportunity for repentance. It is as if God brings things to the brink, then pulls back a little to grant mankind more time to repent. (DG)

·        Whoever his exact identity, “clearly this angel has come from the very presence of God” (Barclay), and shows great might and authority. (DG)

Ezekiel 1:26-28 ….like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day….

Exodus 13:22  He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people

Revelation 9:21

And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

1. Murder: Many will be possessed by demons of murder in this horrific murder-movement that will be focused upon the saints and Israel.

2. Immorality: Billions of people will be demonized with bondage to sexual perversion following in the wake of new technology.

3. Sorcery: Satan worship and occult activity will fill the earth. The nations will be become more “spiritual”, which is different from intellectual-based science proving secularism. Sexual perversion will be dynamically connected to the spiritual realm. It will be more than hedonism (pleasure seekers), but will express aspects of demon worship with a dark spirituality.

4. Theft: There will be many different manifestations of theft. (CS)

 Ezekiel 14:6  Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘thus says the Lord GOD:  “Repent, turn away from your idols, and turn your faces away from all your abominations.

Psalm 94:6  They slay the widow and the stranger, and murder the fatherless.

Revelation 9:19-20

For their power is in their mouth and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they do harm.

But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk.

·        The impenitency of the antichristian generation under these dreadful judgments (MH)

·        Impenitency under divine judgments is an iniquity that will be the ruin of sinners; for where God judges he will overcome (MH)

Leviticus 17:7  They shall no more offer their sacrifices to demons, after whom they have played the harlot.  This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.

Psalm 115:4  Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.

Daniel 5:23 ….And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know…..

Revelation 9:18

By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed – by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which came out of their mouths.

·        The vast havoc and desolation that they made (MH)

·        Their artillery, by which they made such slaughter: fire, smoke, and brimstone (MH)

Exodus 9:14  for at this time I will send all My plagues to your very heart, and on your servants and on your people, that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth.

Psalm 11:6  Upon the wicked He will rain coals; fire and brimstone and a burning wind shall be the portion of their cup.

Revelation 9:17

And thus I saw the horses in the vision:  those who sat on them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfur yellow; and the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and brimstone.

·        As the horses were fierce, like lions, so those who sat upon them were clad in bright and costly armor (MH)

·        They are given a weird, grotesque description. This is a powerful picture of horror, destruction and demonic association.  (DG)

1 Chronicles 12:8  Some Gadites joined David at the stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained for battle, who could handle shield and speak, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as gazelles on the mountains.

Isaiah 5:28, 29 Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent; their horses’ hooves will seem like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind.  Their roaring will be like a lion, they will roar like young lions; yes, they will roar and lay hold of the prey; they will carry it away safely, and no one will deliver.

Revelation 9:16

Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them.

·         Is this number literal or symbolic? “It is possible that the number is not to be taken literally, but simply suggests an army that is impossible to count and is greater than anything mankind has ever seen.” (Hocking)

Psalm 68:17    The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of thousands; the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the Holy Place.

Daniel 7:10  A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him, a thousand thousands ministered to Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.  The court was seated, and the books were opened.

Revelation 9:15

So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind.

·        The time of their military operations is limited (MH)

·        The Euphrates was a landmark of ancient Babylon. It was the frontier of the Israel’s land as fully promised by God (Genesis 15:17-21). It was also the boundary of the old Roman Empire, which will be revived under the Antichrist. (DG)

·        The Euphrates is also associated with the first sin (Genesis 2:10-14), the first murder (Genesis 4:16), the first organized revolt against God (Genesis 11:1-9), the first war confederation (Genesis 14:1), and the first dictatorship (Genesis 10:8-10). (DG)

Psalm 7:13  He also prepares for Himself instruments of death;  He makes His arrows into fiery shafts.

Daniel 5:5  In the same hour the fingers of a man’s hand appeared …..

Revelation 9:13-14

Then the sixth angel sounded.  And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”

·        When nations are ripe for punishment, those instruments of God’s anger that were before restrained are let loose upon them (MH)

·        They are angels especially “prepared” for a specific work of judgment in the end-times. (CS)

Ezekiel 43:15  The altar hearth is four cubits high, with four horns extending upward from the hearth.

Jeremiah 13:5  So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the LORD commanded me.

Revelation 9:12

One woe is past.  Behold, still two more woes are coming after these things.

·        The worst is yet to come (DG)

·        Woe – a curse

Isaiah 3:11 Woe to the wicked!  It shall be ill with him, for the reward of his hands shall be given him.

Lamentations 5:16  The crown has fallen from our head.  Woe to us, for we have sinned!

Revelation 9:11

And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon.

·        Satan has a hierarchy, which includes a demonic king over the locusts from the bottomless pit named “Abaddon” (Hebrew) or “Apollyon” (Greek), which means destroyer (English), thus describing his purpose.

·        This king is not Satan, who rules from the heavenly places and not the bottomless pit (Eph. 6:12). He is the prince of the power of the air (Eph. 2:2). Beelzebub is the ruler of the demons (Mt. 12:24). Satan will be thrown into the bottomless pit after Jesus’ coming (Rev. 20:1-3).

 Psalm 17:4  Concerning the works of men, by the word of Your lips, I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.

Daniel 11:14  Now in those times many shall rise up against the king of the South.  Also, violent men of your people shall exalt themselves in fulfillment of the vision, but they shall fall.

Revelation 9:10

They had tails like scorpions, and there were stings in their tails.  Their power was to hurt men five months.

·        Tails: Power of the sting in their tails (Rev. 9:3, 5, 10)  (CS)

·        They have a set time also.

Deuteronomy 8:15 …who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock….

Psalm 41:7  All who hate me whisper together against me; against me they devise my hurt.

Revelation 9:9

And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots with many horses running into battle.

·        Breastplates: Iron speaks of durability in battle (like the other demons in Rev. 9:17).

·        Wings: Sound of chariots running into battle will cause terror.  (CS)

 

Joel 2:4-5 Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; and like swift steeds, so they run.  With a noise like chariots over mountaintops they leap, like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble, like a strong people set in battle array.

Job 20:24  He will flee from the iron weapon; a bronze bow will pierce him through.

Revelation 9:8

And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots with many horses running into battle.

·        Breastplates: Iron speaks of durability in battle (like the other demons in Rev. 9:17).

·        Wings: Sound of chariots running into battle will cause terror.  (CS)

Joel 2:4-5 Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; and like swift steeds, so they run.  With a noise like chariots over mountaintops they leap, like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble, like a strong people set in battle array.

Job 20:24  He will flee from the iron weapon; a bronze bow will pierce him through.

Revelation 9:7

The shape of the locusts was like the horses prepared for battle.  On their heads were crowns of something like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men.

·        Heads: Crowns with something like gold points to their supremacy (Rev. 14:14).

·        Faces: Human faces emphasize that these demons have human abilities like intelligence and emotion.  If these demons were men then they would not be likened to men.  (CS)

Daniel 7:8  I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.

Joel 1:6  For a nation has come up against My land, strong, and without number; his teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he has the fangs of a fierce lion.

Revelation 9:6

In those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will desire to die, and death will flee from them.

·        Unfortunately, this “sting” does not bring the desired repentance, but instead men desire death. (CS)

·        The anguish of a scorpion sting drives men to great despair and even panic, so that men seek suicide instead of God, but are unable to do it. In an unspecified way, God doesn’t allow them to kill themselves.

                                                                                           

Job 3:21  Who long for death, but it does not come, and search for it more than hidden treasures.

Jeremiah 8:3  Then death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue of those who remain of this evil family, who remain in all the places where I have driven them, says the LORD of hosts.

Revelation 9:5

And they were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months.  Their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.

·        The hurt they were to do them was not a bodily, but a spiritual hurt (MH)

·        Their purpose and period is expressly governed by God, and the purpose of all this to bring repentance (Revelation 9:20-21). (DG)

Proverbs 29:2  When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice, but when a wicked man rules, the people groan.

Isaiah 50:11  Look, all you who kindle a fire, who encircle yourselves with sparks; walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks you have kindled – this you have from My hand; you shall lie down in torment.

Revelation 9:4

They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

·        The characteristics of these locusts make it clear that they are not natural locusts. They have a king whereas natural locusts do not have a king (Rev. 9:11; Prov. 30:27). These have the ability to distinguish between unbelievers who they hurt and believers who they do not hurt. Also, natural locusts do not come up from the depths of the earth and do not sting with their tails.  (CS)

·        The specific time must be taken literally since there is no contextual (biblical) reason to make this figurative or symbolic.  (CS)

 Psalm 105:15 Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.

Ezekiel 9:4-6 … and the LORD said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done within it.”…..

Revelation 9:3

Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth.  And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

·        These locusts had, by the just permission of God, power to hurt (MH)

·        God lifts His restraints off the demonic realm, so their wickedness is manifest. (CS)

Exodus 10:12-15  Then the LROD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land – all that the hail has left.” …

Deuteronomy 8:15   …who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions, and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock…..

Revelation 9:2

And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace.  So the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit.

·        The devil carries on his designs by extinguishing light and knowledge (MH)

·        These are obviously not “natural” locusts. They avoid plants and attack men like scorpions attack. They are “A visual representation of the hordes of demons loosed upon the earth.” (Walvoord)

Genesis 19:28  Then he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain; and he saw, and behold, the smoke of the land which went up like the smoke of a furnace.

Ezekiel 32:7  When I put out your light, I will cover the heavens, and make its stars dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light.

Revelation 9:1

Then the fifth angel sounded:  and I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth.  To him was given the key to the bottomless pit.

·        The text clearly shows us that this star is a person (to him), not a literal star. The verb tense (fallen) indicates that he already had fallen. (DG)

·        This key becomes the devil’s turnkey, to let loose the powers of hell against the churches of Christ (MH)

Isaiah 14:11-16 ….How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!  How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations!.....

Psalm 30:3  O LORD, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.

Revelation 8:13

And I looked, and I heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!”

·        Here are three woes, to show how much the calamities coming should exceed those that had been already (MH)

·        If less judgments do not take effect, but the church and the world grow worse under them, they must expect greater. (MH)

Isaiah 3:11 Woe to the wicked!  It shall be ill with him, for the reward of his hands shall be given him.

Psalm 47:5  God has gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.