The Fifth And Sixth Trumpets

INTRO

We continue our study of Revelation in chapter 9. The book’s title is Revelation, not Revelations, because it is one continuous vision given by Jesus Christ to His apostle, John. Chapter 1 explains about the revelation, and chapters 2—3 cover the seven churches of Asia. Chapters 4—5 cover the throne room of God getting ready for the Lamb. Chapters 6—8 give a picture of how Christ will show up to His people—both Jews, Gentiles, and unbelievers. Based on all our research, here’s our understanding of the chronology of this:

• Seven years while Jesus unpacks the seven scrolls, releasing the Antichrist and then war, famine, death, the waiting martyred, catastrophic natural events, and silence.
• The last three-and-a-half years of this seven is the period of the Great Tribulation. The Tribulation begins when the Antichrist goes into the third temple (the Abomination of Desolation) and declares he is god.
• After a pause, seven trumpets (angels) are revealed who warn about coming dangers. We’ve looked at the first four: (1) fires, (2) seas polluted through blood, (3) contaminated fresh water, (4) and the sun, moon, and stars damaged as nature changes.

We pick up with the fifth and sixth sounding trumpets in chapter 9.

TEACHING

Revelation 9:1-2: After the fifth trumpet has been blown, a star will fall from the skies and be given a key to the shaft of the abyss (v. 1). The star, based on verse 11, could be a demon or Satan himself, or a third possibility could be an angel.¹ Kyle leans toward Satan. Other biblical passages support this:

Luke 10:18 records Jesus’ words to the 70: “I watched Satan fall from heaven like a lighting flash.”

Isaiah 14:12–14 states: “Shining morning star, how you have fallen from the heavens! You destroyer of nations, you have been cut down to the ground” (Isaiah 14:12).

Ezekiel 28:12–15 states: “From the day you were created you were blameless in your ways until wickedness was found in you” (Ezekiel 28:15).

This means Satan received a key, opened the shaft to the bottomless pit, and the smoke came up from a great furnace (v. 2). Many scholars think this means Satan will release the demonic host in the abyss, bringing hell to earth.² So some refer to the fifth trumpet as the demonic invasion. Regardless of who opens the abyss—Satan, a demon, or an angel, the demonic host is given one more chance to do their worst.

Revelation 9:3–6: Next, locusts came out of the smoke, and they were given the same power that scorpions have (v. 3). MacArthur states, “These are not normal locusts, however, but specially prepared ones that are merely the outward form of demons, who, like locusts, will bring swarming desolation.”³ The locusts were told not to harm the grass, because it was already destroyed, but only those who do not have God’s seal on their foreheads (v. 4). This would be everyone except the 144,000 who have God’s seal on their foreheads. They were not permitted to kill but only torment their victims for five months (v. 5). MacArthur explains the normal life cycle of a locust is five months, usually from May to September.⁴ The torment would become so bad that people will unsuccessfully attempt suicide to escape it (v. 6).

Revelation 9:7–12: The locusts looked like horses equipped for battle with gold crowns and men’s faces, hair like women’s hair, teeth like lions, and chests like iron breastplates. Their wings sounded like chariots rushing into battle (vv. 7–9), and their tails had stingers like scorpions (v. 10). Some scholars suggest these locusts were from the demonic and also had a hierarchy within the demonic just like there is a hierarchy within angels. MacArthur states that demonic creatures have a king whose name in “both Greek and Hebrew means ‘destroyer’. Apparently, ‘the angel of the bottomless pit’ is one of Satan’s most trusted leaders or, possibly, Satan himself.”⁵ This is a picture of all-out satanic warfare.

Don’t forget that Jesus will still be in control, and He will allow this (Ephesians 6:12). I think we deal with this today. John 10:10 says Satan “comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy.” Verse 12 warns that there are two more “woes” (trumpets) to come.

Revelation 9:13–21: The sixth angel blows his trumpet, and John heard a voice come from the four horns of the gold altar that is before God (v. 13). This language is of the mercy seat. The voice instructs the sixth angel to release the four angels who are bound at the Euphrates River (v. 14). These are also fallen angels who were prepared for the exact moment to be released to lead an army to kill one-third of the human race (v. 15). Two hundred million demonic troops will be involved (v. 16). The army horsemen wore breastplates that were red, blue, and yellow, and the horses’ heads were lions’ heads that breathed out fire, smoke, and sulfur (v. 17).

A third of the human race would be killed by these three plagues—fire, smoke, and sulfur (v. 18). Revelation 6:8 describes a fourth of the human race being destroyed, so added to this third, over half of the human race will be gone at this point. The horses have tails, which resemble snakes that inflict injury (v. 19). Those who were not killed STILL DID NOT REPENT and continued to worship demons and idols (v. 20). “They did not repent of their murders, their sorceries, their sexual immorality, or their thefts” (v. 21.

CLOSING

The reason for all of this is to call people to repent. Half of the world's population has been killed, yet, people still do not turn to God.