Monday, March 11, 2019

Other-worldly Pestilence-Revelation 9:1-12


As a movie buff I’m always impressed by how CGI experts and graphic artists give life and likeness to imaginative characters with other-worldly features that are found in works of fiction. One notable example of this is the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. In the movie franchise that was produced in the early 2000s, elves, dwarfs, wizards, dragons, and other creatures came to life on the big screen in impressive ways to tell an epic story of good verses evil. An infamous case of imagination/innovation in this particular endeavor was the rendering of the orc. These muddy monsters were as grotesque as they were frightening and really added to the portrayal of evil in the arc of the narrative.

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However, these orcs have nothing on the vision and description we are given in Revelation 9:1-12 following the sounding of the fifth trumpet. As God continues to execute his wrath on a wicked world during the tribulation, something truly terrifying emerges onto the scene that makes orcs look relatively tame. Therefore, with some trepidation, let’s read through this passage and catch a glimpse of what the forces of evil will be capable of so that we might engage the struggle we are in now with greater fervency.

1) The Emergence of the Locusts-9:1-6

John reports, “then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit was given to him,…” (9:1). Stars throughout the Bible are often used a symbols for angels (Judg. 5:20; Job 38:7; etc.). The star in verse 1 of chapter 9 is probably another angelic messenger sent form heaven to do God’s will (not unlike the trumpeting angels and the angel that filled the golden censer earlier in the context). “The key to the bottomless pit was given” to this angel. But what exactly is this pit/abyss? Some have suggested that this abyss is a metaphor for the accumulated power of an evil world system (Caird). Others believe that the pit is synonymous with hell. However, a better position holds that this abyss probably refers to a “preliminary place of incarceration for fallen angels from which some of them are about to be released under this trumpet” (Thomas, Revelation 9-12, 28). In fact, this interpretation appears to be consistent with how “abyss” is used elsewhere in John’s Apocalypse (9:2, 11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1, 3) and throughout the new testament. For instance, in a context where Jesus is in the process of healing a demoniac, the demons possessing the victim “were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss” (Luke 8:31).  Therefore, this abyss probably refers to the realm in which demons are kept—a place that is, up to this point, in some ways hidden from the physical world.

As the vision continues, the angel proceeded to take the key given him and “opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit” (9:2). In Revelation, smoke most often coincides with judgment, doom, and torment (9:17, 18; 18:9, 18; 19:3). This is consistent with what was witnessed when God judged Sodom and Gomorrah and appeared at Sinai.

Genesis 19:28-“and he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the valley, and he saw, and behold, the smoke of the land ascended like the smoke of a furnace.”

Exodus 19:18-“Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace and the whole mountain quaked violently.”

Just as trumpets are often employed to indicate that God is about to do something big (see discussion on 8:1-6), these passages indicate that the presence of smoke means judgment is coming. So thick is this judgment that it darkens the sky.

As the smoke rises out of this pit, so too do locusts emerge onto the earth—“then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth” (9:3a). Though in some ways parallel to the eight plague against Egypt in Exodus 10:12-20, these locusts are markedly different from a typical plague of pestilence.
One reason for believing that this isn’t your typical plague of locusts is found in the second part of verse 3. Unlike average locusts, these have special other-worldly features (see 9:7-10) and powers-“and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power” (9:3b).

Also, these locusts are instructed not to destroy what locusts typically destroy—“They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man,…” (9:4-5). 
Normally locusts eradicate crops; they don’t torment human beings. However, this plague is not on vegetation but on those who do not have the seal (see chapter 7). Even still, these locusts are not given power enough to kill. Instead, they can only torment, and even this they can only do for five months. The limitation of their power and the scope of the havoc they create once against reiterates their subservience to the ultimate sovereign in this unfolding drama—God who sits on the throne. Much as the horsemen, angels, and natural disasters proved to be tools in the hands of almighty God, these locusts serve in the same capacity. In this case, the judgment takes the form of a painful scorpion bite, the side-effects of which appear to linger and fester for weeks!

So bad is the pain these stings cause that John reveals, “in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them” (9:6). The verb for “seek” is defined as the “desire to have or experience something, with the probably implication of making an attempt to realize one’s desire” (Louw & Nida). Applied this this context, not only will people wish they were dead, they will make attempts to that end. However, death “will be escaping them.” Though people wish for and work toward death, death is personified as a fugitive running away from those oppressed by this plague of locusts.

Before the text moves toward a description of the locusts, it might be helpful to consider what these locusts are/what they represent. Several choices have been offered by scholars over the years. One perspective is that these locusts are a symbol for human armies. Joel 2:1ff, after all, compares a large army to a swarm of locusts. However, the description that follows goes well beyond what this perspective is capable of containing. Others suggest that this is a highly figurative representation of God’s superhuman judgment against men. However, this is too vague given the detail present in this passage. The best possibility is that these locusts are demons/fallen angels who assume the form that is described in this context. (Thomas, Revelation 8-22, 30; Aune, Revelation 6-16, 527). After all, they come from the abyss where evil spirits are imprisoned, their attack is against men, not nature, they have a form that no human being has ever seen before, and often demons are seen assuming other material forms (like frogs in Revelation 16:13). In other words, “what emerges to afflict rebellious mankind,…is a horde of supernatural creatures bent on spreading as much misery as possible” (Thomas, Revelation 8-22, 30). Ultimately the purpose of this fifth trumpet judgment is to “intimidate, demoralize, and terrorize the earth-dwellers” in apocalyptic ways (Osborne, Revelation, 365). No longer are demons kept hidden in a spiritual domain. Instead they are allowed to break through the physical realm and enact their own brand of horror upon the earth (dualism seen in the juxtaposition of physical vs. spiritual and good vs. evil is a staple of apocalyptic literature).

2) The Description of the Locusts-9:7-12

After reporting on the scope and nature of the judgment of these locusts/demons, John describes their peculiar appearance saying, “The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle;…” (9:7a). You can sense how difficult it is for John to put the description of these demonic beings into words with the repetition of “as” (wV) and “like” (omoioV) (nine times in this passage). This means that reader ought not read too much into the details, hoping to reap important insights about the particulars. It appears as though John is combining the locust, the scorpion, and the warriors of an invading army (see Joel 2:4-5; Job 39:19-25). It also seems these demonic beings were supernaturally large and horrifying. While these were sent to inflict pain with their tails, they also will instill terror with their appearance (Osborne, Revelation, 369).

The particulars of the appearance of these locusts move from the head to the tail. Concerning the head John says, “and on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions” (9:7b-8). Interpretations for each of these elements abound and ultimately together reveal that these are especially scary beings. They are powerful (golden crown), anthropomorphic (human heads) disheveled and unclean (long hair); and hungry (lion’s teeth—associated with the devil who prowls around like a roaring lion [1 Pet. 5:8]).

In addition to their facial features, John reveals that “They had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle. They have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months,…” (9:9-10). The “breastplate” is perhaps a double reference to the thorax of a locust that resembles a breastplate and the armor that horses would adorn in the ancient world as they went into battle. This breastplate also insinuates that these locusts are relatively invincible during this five-month span, impervious to measures that might be employed to exterminate them.

Another battlefield reference is given with the terrifying sound that the horde makes—"and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle” (9:9b). No doubt before people even see these grotesque creatures, they will be paralyzed in fear upon hearing their approach.

Joel 2:4-5-“Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; and like war horses, so they run. With a noise as of chariots they leap on the tops of the mountains,…”

As scary as these features prove, it is the tail that is most fearsome—“they have tails like scorpions, and stings, and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months” (9:10). The verb used in the present tense emphasizes the ongoing torment that these creatures will deal during this span.
Interestingly, these locusts also have a leader—“they have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrews is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon” (9:11). The two names given in two different languages for this leader mean the same thing—“destroyer.” In apocalyptic terminology, this word is often used for the destruction of the world (Osborne, Revelation, 373). Such a name fits this context of global destruction in the trumpet plagues and the bowls that follow.  Though some believe this is Satan and others draw connections between this figure and the angel of death in Exodus 12:23, it is more probable that this is an arch-demon (kind of the opposite of an archangel) who is given charge over this demonic horde.

Interestingly, the Greek term for “Apollyon” is similar to the name of the Greek god Apollo and the locust was one of his symbols. Also, the emperor Domitian (who ruled Rome at or around the timing of the writing of Revelation) believed he was Apollo incarnate. Therefore, John may be framing his description of this plague in ways that were connected to the powerful pagan players on the world’s stage during his lifetime. Whether that is true or not, it is important to at least appreciate that ungodly pagan forces on the earth are no doubt inspired/influenced/and empowered by the wickedness in the spiritual realm in general and demonic activity in particular.

This fifth trumpet satisfies the first woe that corresponds to what was introduced in 8:13—“the first woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things” (9:12).

So What?

However, before we hear the sound of the sixth trumpet, let us take a moment to appreciate what has been described for us in these verses and peak behind the curtain so-to-speak in an effort to remind ourselves of the very real spiritual struggle that is going on  around us now and will, according to this text, be elevated during the tribulation period. The Bible is clear: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12). Though we may not see demons in the flesh at present and are only privy to their activity in indirect ways (in their oppression or possession of a host or system), this passage illuminates just how ugly, sinister, and horrifying they truly are. These are the kinds of creatures that we are up against as we seek to promote the gospel and serve in the mission of God! Though God’s common grace keeps at least some of these creatures relatively at bay, one day they will be loosed upon the earth for all to see, enacting a period of suffering never before seen.

So what are we to do in light of so gross a description and so demoralizing a plague? We must allow the reality of what is coming to motivate us toward mission, put on the armor of God, and improve the way that we pray, recognizing all the while that ”greater is he that is in me than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). After all, don’t we want our friends, family, and neighbors to avoid the horrors we read about in this passage? Are we not convinced that there is an ongoing spiritual battle for the souls of those around us and we are on the front lines? As epic as the battles of Lord of the Rings franchise are on the big screen, what is even more impressive is the spiritual warfare we are engaged in on any given day! It is time for us pray like we know this, live like we know this, and share with others like we know this!

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