Rev 9:9-12 Part 6 of The Fifth Trumpet
Audio Download
Rev 9:9-12 Part 6 of The Fifth Trumpet
[Study Aired August 18, 2024]
Rev 9:9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
Rev 9:10 And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.
Rev 9:11 And they had a king over them, [ which is] the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue [ is] Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath [ his] name Apollyon.
Rev 9:12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
The symbol we last covered was the fourth symbol which was the fact that these locusts which had the appearance of horses and the face of a man also “ had hair as the hair of women”. Our next symbol is:
5) They had breastplates, as breastplates of iron
We know what iron signifies in scripture:
Dan 2:40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.
Iron is harder and stronger than any other Biblical metal. “Iron breaks in pieces and subdues all things.” So why do these locusts have “breastplates of iron”? The answer is that a breastplate covers the heart, and there is no way to get to the heart of these locusts because of the deep darkness and the pride and deception that is in our hearts at this stage of our walk.
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Daniel’s image, which typifies our experience, begins with a head of gold, followed by arms of silver, followed by a belly and thigh of brass, followed by legs of iron, and finally it is standing on feet which are made of part iron and part clay. It is concerning the legs of iron that we read in Dan 2:40, that “iron breaks and subdues all things”. The reason these breastplates are of iron is to let us know that it will take the supernatural intervention of God and His Son coming into our lives to destroy these breastplates of iron and to destroy our hardened and darkened hearts, which are protected by the seemingly impenetrable deceits which these “breastplates of iron” signify:
Dan 2:45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands [signifying that it has nothing to do with our will], and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.
6) the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
Rev 9:9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
Our sixth symbol that describes these horse- like locusts is “the sound of their wings was a the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.” All locusts have wings, and the wings of these locusts sound like chariots of many horses going to battle.” ‘Wings’ in scripture signify those things which operate in the heavens, and the fact that the wings of these locusts “sound like chariots of many horses going to battle” tells us that we are up against an insurmountable and powerful army which has been given power over our heavens and is constantly warring against the spirit of our mind:
Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Rom 7:23 But I see another law [the law of sin and death] in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
These ‘locusts’ are the messengers of “the prince of the power of the air”, and their influence upon our lives cause us to be “the children of disobedience” living to fulfill “the lust of our flesh” keeping us subject to “the law of sin and death” (Rom 8:2) which ‘sting’ hurts us for a symbolic 5 months as we fulfil the desire of our flesh and mind while knowing that the Lord has commanded us to overcome those desires of the flesh and of the mind:
Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
Whether it is the destructive power of locusts or the lies spread into every house by the work of an unclean bird like a stork, it is all accomplished by the operation of ‘wings’ which can travel about in our heavens:
Zec 5:5 Then the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth.
Zec 5:6 And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth.
Zec 5:7 And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah.
Zec 5:8 And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.
Zec 5:9 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven.
Zec 5:10 Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah?
Zec 5:11 And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar [Babylon, Gen 10:10] and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.Gen 10:10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
“A woman…. is wickedness… through all the earth” is verified by these words in:
Rev 17:3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
Rev 17:4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
Rev 17:5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
Rev 17:6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
We are called “the bride” of Christ and women are universally accepted as signifying the church whether faithful or apostate.
What we need to learn in this symbol is that ‘wings’ signify what the Lord is doing in our heavens. In this case He is sending evil spirits with false doctrines to trouble us just as he did to King Saul:
1Sa 16:14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.
1Sa 16:15 And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.
It was common knowledge in the days of King Saul that evil spirits were servants of God The same thing happened to King Ahab:
1Ki 22:20 And the LORD said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner.
1Ki 22:21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the LORD, and said, I will persuade him.
1Ki 22:22 And the LORD said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he [the Lord] said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.
1Ki 22:23 Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee.
It is the same today, and it behooves us to simply acknowledge the sovereignty of God over both the good and the evil. In scripture evil men are called the Lord’s sword.
Psa 17:13 Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, [ which is] thy sword:
We need to acknowledge that the words ‘which is’ are not in the Hebrew and could just as easily have read ‘with’ instead of ‘which is.’ Nevertheless we are still told this in Pro 16.
Pro 16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.
So the Lord is definitely the Lord of both the good and the evil that is within us, and it is He who creates us as wicked first, for our own “day of evil” within each of us. It is He also who sends the angel that opens the bottomless pit and darkens our Sun and air by these locusts which hurt us for five months and crush us and bring us to want to die with Him on His cross. Here is Rev 9 in Joe 1. It is the same event. This is the “day of the Lord” which Peter said he had experienced just before the day of Pentecost.
Joe 1:1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
Joe 1:2 Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers?
Joe 1:3 Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation.
Joe 1:4 That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.
Joe 1:5 Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth.
Joe 1:6 For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth [ are] the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion.
Joe 1:7 He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast [ it] away; the branches thereof are made white.
Joe 1:8 Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth.
Joe 1:9 The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests, the LORD’S ministers, mourn.
Joe 1:10 The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth.
Joe 1:11 Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.
Joe 1:12 The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.
Joe 1:13 Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.
Joe 1:14 Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders [ and] all the inhabitants of the land [ into] the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD,
Joe 1:15 Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD [ is] at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.
Joe 1:16 Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, [ yea], joy and gladness from the house of our God?
Joe 1:17 The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered.
Joe 1:18 How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.
Joe 1:19 O LORD, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field.
Joe 1:20 The beasts of the field cry also unto thee: for the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.
Is this not what the seven seals, seven trumpets and seven plagues are doing within us as we are caused to “keep the things written therein?” (Rev 1:3) Is this not the very same “Lord’s day” which includes the events of the revelation of Jesus Christ? Is this not the destruction of our old life, which we must all experience to bring us into our new life? Speaking of this very battle, Joel continues:
Joe 2:11 And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?
Joe 2:30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
Joe 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
Christ mentions this very same battle in which these locusts as horses with the faces of men and the hair of a woman are involved:
Mat 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
Mat 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
Mat 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.Rev 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,
Rev 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
Rev 6:13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
Rev 6:14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
Rev 6:15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
Rev 6:16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
Rev 6:17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
None are able to stand against his wrath in this battle. The lies of all these locusts, their strength as horses, and their iron breastplates will all fall victim to Christ, and the armies that are with him. He has created this army of locusts for our destruction. When they have accomplished their evil deeds and have destroyed within us all that the lies of Egypt and Babylon have produced within us, then He will destroy the destroyer.
Rev 17:14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
7) They had tails like scorpions…
Rev 9:10 And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months
The scriptures tell us plainly what the significance of ‘tails’ is:
Isa 9:15 The ancient and honourable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.
8) They had a king over them…
Our eighth symbol is that of a king:
Rev 9:11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
Kings exercise power over their subjects. Kings and princes are used interchangeably in scripture. Isaiah 14:3-23 is addressed to the king of Babylon while Ezekiel 28:1-10 is addressed to the prince of Tyrus. Both express the exact same message. Both condemn “the beast” who is also called “the man of sin” who sits on the throne of our hearts demanding to be worshipped as God until the brightness of the coming of Christ destroys this “man of sin” and his kingdom within us:
2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. [Exactly what the king of Babylon and the prince of Tyrus did]
2Th 2:5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2Th 2:6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
2Th 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
2Th 2:9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
2Th 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
2Th 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
2Th 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Our last symbol is:
9) The angel of the bottomless pit
Rev 9:11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
The Lord has ordained that his “vessel of clay… first man Adam” is to worship himself and fulfill his every carnal desire. This is what the scriptures can “worshipping the beast”. What the king of Babylon, the prince of Tyrus, and the man of sin within us fails to realize is that when we worship ourselves we are also worshipping the dragon who empowers us to put our own desires ahead of the Lord’s desires for us:
Rev 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
Rev 13:2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
Rev 13:3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
Rev 13:4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?
“They worshipped the dragon” confirms the words of our Lord and the words of the apostle Paul both of who call us “of your father the devil” and “the children of disobedience… the children of the prince of he power of the air”:
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air [“The dragon” who is the first to empower us to do his bidding], the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
The Hebrew word ‘abaddon,’ becomes the name of the angel of the bottomless pit. This word appears 5 times in the Old Testament.
Job 26:6 Hell is naked before him, and destruction [ abaddon] hath no covering.
Job 28:20 Whence then cometh wisdom? and where [ is] the place of understanding?
Job 28:21 Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the fowls of the air.
Job 28:22 Destruction [ abaddon] and death say, We have heard the fame thereof with our ears.Job 31:12 For it [ is] a fire [ that] consumeth to destruction [ abaddon], and would root out all mine increase.
Psa 88:11 Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? [ or] thy faithfulness in destruction [ abaddon]?
Pro 15:11 Hell and destruction [ abaddon] are before the LORD: how much more then the hearts of the children of men?
Will God’s loving kindness be declared in the grave? The answer is, yes, it will. Will His faithfulness be declared in destruction? Again the answer is, yes, it will.
Mat 10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose [ Greek, apollumi] it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
It is only through the destruction of our old man that our new man can be born.
Mat 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy [ Greek, apollumi] both soul and body in hell.
Mat 12:14 Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy [ Greek, apollumi] him.
It is a grave mistake to think that the king of the bottomless pit is Adam himself. If that were so, then where is ‘Adam’ in these verses?
Gen 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
1Sa 16:14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.
1Sa 16:15 And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee
King Saul was not “troubled” until the Lord sent a spirit to do so.
Mat 4:1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
If Christ’s flesh was ‘satan’ what need was there to “go into the wilderness to be tempted?
Joh 13:27 And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly
Where was Satan before “the sop”. If Judas’ flesh was satan why wait till “after the sop” for satan to enter Judas?
Satan is not our flesh, but he is our ‘father’ (Joh 8:44) and he definitely has been given to rule over our fleshly bodies until the Lord comes and dethrones him with “the brighteness of His coming” (2Th 2:3-8).
Rev 20:2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
There is no one here who is denying that “that old serpent the devil and Satan” dwells within us, just as Christ dwells within us whe He comes to dethrone “the man of sin”. When ‘the man of sin’ is cast out Satan goes with him. When we say that Satan is our flesh we are saying that Eve was speaking to Adam when she was seduced by the serpent. What utter nonsense! Adam was already in King Saul before “the spirit of the Lord departed from Saul.” Christ was not being tempted of Adam when He was in the wilderness 40 days. Adam did not enter into Judas “after the sop.” Adam was there all along. And finally, Adam will be on earth being ruled with a rod of iron all through the thousand year reign of Christ, while Satan is bound in the bottomless pit which is within us all.
Therefore Abaddon, also known as Apollyon, is the king of the lies which are symbolized by the locusts which come out of the smoke of the bottomless pit, simply because God created him to be his lying Adversary, “from the beginning.”
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Summary
We have covered nine symbols in this study. There are six symbols which the holy spirit has used to describe these locusts which come out of the smoke that ascends up out of the bottomless pit.
1) They are shaped like horses prepared to battle, tells us that we are fighting an enemy with great strength.
2) They appear to have crown of gold on their heads, tells us that they will at first be mistaken for overcomers, and those who are the servants of, and the angels of God.
3) Their faces are “as the faces of men,” tells us that these lies are nothing more or less than idols of our own hearts, which we have carved out of the truths that are the Word of God.
4) They had hair as the hair of women, tells us that these doctrines are one and all the doctrines of that great harlot woman, and they certainly do darken our sun and air.
5) They had breastplates, as breastplates of iron, tells us that it is impossible for any man to reach our hearts and destroy these lies and deceits, and that it will take Christ, Himself to do so.
6) “The sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle,” tells us that these deceits are many and strong and they are ready and willing to do battle with our Lord and His Word.
The last three symbols are concerned with the function of the adversary, satan, in the Lord’s plan and purpose for our lives
7) They had tails like scorpions, and we saw that their ‘tails’ signified “the prophet that prophesies lies” :
Isa_9:15 The ancient and honourable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.
8) They had a king over them…
Our eighth symbol is that of a king:
Rev 9:11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
We saw that a king exercises power just as we will be “kings and priests” with Christ ruling this ear for a thousand years if we are granted to have a part in that “blessed and holy… first resurrection”:
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
9) The angel of the bottomless pit
Rev 9:11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
The king that is over these locusts is “the angel of the bottomless pit”. What that means is that he ministers to our fleshly lusts with all of His lies. It all works to destroy our lives so He is named Abaddon, in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek.
This tells us that this is a life and death battle in all of these seven trumpets, and God had created the waster to destroy, and he is good at what he was created to do. That is to destroy all that we think we are, so that we can be “made again as seems good to the Potter to make us” (Jer 18:4). Just like the evil Joseph’s brother thought against him worked for the good of the entire family, so also is the evil that Satan is given to perform working good for all of the Lord’s creation.
Next week, Lord willing, we will begin our study of the sixth trumpet, which is also called “the second woe.”
Rev 9:13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
Rev 9:14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.
Rev 9:15 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.
Other related posts
- Rev 9:9-12 Part 6 of The Fifth Trumpet (August 18, 2024)
- Rev 9:7-8 Part 5 of The Fifth Trumpet (August 16, 2024)