(Suicide Flees)
Those Who Refuse to Repent Revelation 9:1-21
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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 6 In those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will desire to die, and death will flee from them. 7 The shape of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle. On their heads were crowns of something like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. 8 They had hair like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. 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. 10 They had tails like scorpions, and there were stings in their tails. Their power was to hurt men five months. 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. 12 One woe is past. Behold, still two more woes are coming after these things.13 Then the sixth angel sounded: And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is 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 and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind. 16 Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them. 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. 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. 19 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. 20 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. 21 And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.
Last Wednesday we studied the first four Trumpet Judgments. Let me remind you that although those four judgments were terrible, the next three are much worse. Remember, the first four angels sent to earth dealt with the environment, but the next three bring calamity and woes to mankind.
There will be terrible consequences for those who refuse to repent- those who choose to do their own thing. Choosing the creation, but refusing the Creator. God will deal with every person’s choices. The Creator will have the final say over all His creation.
Revelation 9:1-2NLT Then the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen to earth from the sky, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. 2 When he opened it, smoke poured out as though from a huge furnace, and the sunlight and air turned dark from the smoke.
Unlike the other stars that had fallen through the first four judgements, this star will be an angelic being- probably satan himself.
He will receive the key to the bottomless pit. (Literally the ‘pit of the abyss.’) This pit is mentioned 7 times in Revelation, it refers to the prison where some of the demonic hordes are incarcerated, the place of severest torment and isolation.
Jude 6-7 And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; 7 as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.
Revelation 9:3NLT Then locusts came from the smoke and descended on the earth, and they were given power to sting like scorpions.
In the 1950’s a locust swarm devoured every growing thing for several hundred miles in the Middle East. These aren’t normal locust, but specially prepared ones that are merely the outward form of demons, who like locust, will bring swarming desolation. (John finds these creatures to be hard to describe.)
Revelation 9:4NLT They were told not to harm the grass or plants or trees, but only the people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
This would be everyone, but the 144,000 Jews and their converts.
Revelation 9:5NLT They were told not to kill them but to torture them for five months with pain like the pain of a scorpion sting.
The normal life cycle of locust is usually 5 months from May to Sept.
Revelation 9:6NLT In those days people will seek death but will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them!
The torment will find no relief. (Suicide will even be unsuccessful.)
Revelation 9: 7-10NLT The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. They had what looked like gold crowns on their heads, and their faces looked like human faces. 8 They had hair like women’s hair and teeth like the teeth of a lion. 9 They wore armor made of iron, and their wings roared like an army of chariots rushing into battle.10 They had tails that stung like scorpions, and for five months they had the power to torment people.
These locusts will be demonic creatures and intelligent beings. They will be fierce, powerful, and deadly. Their breastplates will be made of iron, so their vital organ are protected.
Remember in Matt. 8, when Jesus confronted the demon-possessed maniac of Gadara? The demons begged and pleaded with Jesus, that he would not cast them into the abyss. Why were they afraid that He would send them there? Because they had friends in low places…that don’t get out much…that are crazy mad! And so they begged for mercy, and asked to be cast instead into the swine. And Jesus sent them into the pigs, and they went crazy and ran into the sea and drowned.
* Did you hear that? Jesus sent the demons into the pigs…the first recorded incident in all of history, of someone making deviled ham!
Revelation 9:11NLT Their king is the angel from the bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon—the Destroyer.
This destroyer ‘Apollyon’ will be their King. This is one of satan’s most trusted and honored leader, or possibly satan himself.
Listen to Ephesians 2:2NLT You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world.[a] He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.
Revelation 9:12NLT The first terror is past, but look, two more terrors are coming!
One ‘woe’ has pasted, two more are coming! (Fearful)
Revelation 9:13NLT Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice speaking from the four horns of the gold altar that stands in the presence of God.
The gold altar of incense included small horns on each side. (Ex.30:27) Normally a place of mercy, as God’s responds to His people’s prayers, but now the altar will respond with a cry of vengeance.
Revelation 9:14-16NLT And the voice said to the sixth angel who held the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great Euphrates River.” 15 Then the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were turned loose to kill one-third of all the people on earth. 16 I heard the size of their army, which was 200 million mounted troops.
These 4 angels are fallen angels. One-third of the people will be killed. (Presently, that would be over 2 billion people.) These demon forces will make war with earth’s inhabitants.
Revelation 9:17NLT And in my vision, I saw the horses and the riders sitting on them. The riders wore armor that was fiery red and dark blue and yellow. The horses had heads like lions, and fire and smoke and burning sulfur billowed from their mouths.
Brimstone is a yellowish, sulfuric rock that often attends fire and smoke in the book of Revelation. These stones are common in the Dead Sea region, when ignited such deposits melt and produce burning streams and suffocating gasses.
Revelation 9:18-19NLT One-third of all the people on earth were killed by these three plagues—by the fire and smoke and burning sulfur that came from the mouths of the horses. 19 Their power was in their mouths and in their tails. For their tails had heads like snakes, with the power to injure people.
John’s language represents the demon’s ability to let loose it’s destructive power in both directions.
Revelation 9:20-21NLT But the people who did not die in these plagues still refused to repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. They continued to worship demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood—idols that can neither see nor hear nor walk! 21 And they did not repent of their murders or their witchcraft or their sexual immorality or their thefts.
The Greek word for witchcraft here is, “pharmacy.” Drugs bring with them a great opportunity to go farther into seances and witchcraft with mediums.
Benediction.
