Revelation 8 and 9 contrasts the Kingdom of Heaven with the kingdom of darkness as the six trumpets are blown by the angels. As evil is allowed to inflict the earth, the text reminds us of God’s promise to protect those who are in Him.
October 7, 2024
Speaker: Dustin Scott
Passage: Revelation 8:6-9:21
I’m hearing the sound of our voices and realizing we’re not ready yet. Dustin, we’re not ready for Revelation 8 and 9. Hold off a little longer. I’m excited to look at these two chapters, and before we even begin, I just want to give a bit of a disclaimer.
These are going to be some dark chapters of Scripture. If I’m looking at the broad testimony of Scripture, these are probably some of the darkest chapters in the whole Bible. But remember, John told us that this book was given for what purpose? To reveal Who? Jesus, right? So, in the midst of the darkness, the cryptic imagery, the questions I want you to keep at the forefront of your mind, this book is intended to reveal Jesus.
It’s going to feel like a bit of a wild ride through the images, and I think at the end, we’ll be able to pull things back together and understand what on earth chapters 8 and 9 are talking about. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s pray.
Holy Spirit, You were the One Who instructed John that this book contained things to hear, to read, and to obey, and so would You show us what practical truth You’re teaching us this morning. Lord, we remember those warnings at the end of this book to anyone who adds or takes away.
So as we move ahead, would You not allow us to add or take away from Your Word, but would You remind us steadily of Who Your Word reveals? Lord, for the questions that can’t possibly be answered by human minds, let us be okay with the questions. For the images which are dark and alarming, remind us that You gave this book to reveal Your Son.
Lord, be with us as we study and let Your church hear what the Spirit is saying to her this morning and to everyone in this room. We ask this in Your name, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
So last week, Pastor Greg opened chapter 8 and was looking at verses 1- 5, and he spoke to the power of prayer in prompting Heaven and bringing about God’s supernatural activity upon the earth.
Now, the book of Revelation is full of parallelism where the Kingdom of Heaven is going to be contrasted against the kingdom of darkness. You might already have noticed that reading through it on your own. There’s a Lamb and a dragon; there are two witnesses and two beasts; there’s the bride of the Lamb– that’s us, the people of God– and then there’s a great prostitute who represents the wicked world.
And John isn’t authoring these intricate parallels to create enticing literature. He did, but I don’t think he was interested in being a New York Times best-selling author. He’s divinely inspired unto one purpose which is revealing Jesus. And chapters 8 and 9 are going to conduct this same form of parallelism, where the Kingdom of Heaven is contrasted against the kingdom of darkness.
In verses 1-5, we find that the angels of Heaven take the prayers of believers and mix them together with the incense of the altar. And what comes on the other side of that? Supernatural activity. I want us to realize that God is inviting us as believers to cooperate with His sovereign rule of the universe through our prayer. Isn’t that wild that we get to play a part in this?
And there’s a part of me that thinks Heaven’s process is being revealed to John, why? So that he can go back to the churches he pastors in Asia Minor and tell them about the power of prayer. Prayer is what provokes supernatural change upon the earth. And here’s where the parallelism comes: in verse 6 and onward, we find the kingdom of darkness responding with its own counterfeit process.
Remember how it was the angels who were taking the prayer and mixing it together with the incense? We’re going to find two falling stars. If we go back to Revelation 1:20, what do stars represent? Angels, right? So we find a fallen angel bringing bitterness to the earth and another angel opening up the abyss. So Heaven takes prayer, mixes it with incense, and out comes supernatural activity. Whereas the kingdom of darkness takes bitterness mixed with smoke, and what comes on the other side of that? Demonic activity. We find that prayer is the language of Heaven, whereas bitterness is the language of Hell.
That’s the picture John is painting for us. So, with our eyes fixed upon Jesus, ready for some cryptic images along the way, and looking into these two kingdoms with two different languages, let’s dive into Revelation 8 and 9.
Starting in verse 7, it says, “The first angel blew his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and they were hurled to the earth, and a third of the earth was burned up.”
The first trumpet to strike the earth mirrors the second plague of Egypt. If we go back to the book of Exodus, these plagues are given unto Egypt so that Pharaoh might soften his heart, repent, and release the Israelite captives. And as we’re looking at chapters 8 and 9, it’s important for us to know that nineteen times within this text, John is going to use two different Greek terms that I think can help us interpret it.
The first one is the Greek word hōs, which means “as” or “like” and he’ll use that thirteen times. If I told you my Prius drives like a rocket, one, you’d know I was a liar; two, you would know what I meant. This is figurative language, not literal language.
The second word is various forms of the Greek term homoiōs, which means “similar.” John’s going to use that six times. If I told you my Prius drives similar to a rocket, you’d know I was still lying, right? And you would know I was using figurative, not literal, language.
John is making it clear that these descriptions are not literal. Rather, they point to greater spiritual realities. So, what is the first spiritual reality we see within chapter 8? We see that judgment is increasing. In Revelation 6, only a fourth of the earth was struck in judgment, but now a third of the earth is being struck in judgment.
Yet God continues to limit the angels’ abilities to damage the earth. Why? Because the aim of judgment here isn’t destruction- it’s repentance. God’s heart is that the sinful of the world would repent, find salvation, and have Jesus revealed to them.
Moving forward into verses 8 and 9, it says, “The second angel blew his trumpet and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood.”
The second trumpet to strike the earth mirrors the first plague of Egypt, an event where God turned the Nile River into blood in Exodus 7. Why did He do that? To remind the Egyptians of their sin of killing the firstborn Israelites. And how did the Egyptians kill the firstborn Israelites? They threw their bodies into the Nile River. This is a judgment against bloodshed. In Revelation. 8, we find that judgment is being poured out on the earth because of its violence and its bloodshed.
As we move to the third trumpet in verses 10-11, “the third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from Heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters became wormwood, and many died because the water was made bitter.”
The third trumpet calls down a falling star- a falling angel- who brings bitterness to the earth. The term Wormwood- in Hebrew, la’anah– is used throughout the Old Testament as a spiritual symbol for the bitterness within us which instigates sin against God. We find that in Deuteronomy and Amos. It also represents the bitterness which comes with God’s judgment of our sins. We have all felt that bitterness in one way or another.
Why is that important? Why is John’s scriptural context so crucial here? Well, many have imagined, while reading Revelation, that perhaps this falling star is a meteor strike. In the 1980s, many thought it was Chernobyl in the disaster which happened there. And I find these interpretations improbable. Why? Because John gives us a key for understanding stars. He says they represent angels.
And if we think about the first fallen angel- the enemy- what sin instigated his fall from Heaven? It was bitterness against God. Perhaps this is a picture of the enemy falling from Heaven, bringing with him the sin of bitterness, which is the counter language of darkness to the prayer of God’s people.
If we go to the fourth trumpet in verse 12, it says, “The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon and stars and a third of their light was darkened.”
The fourth trumpet mirrors the ninth plague of Egypt, which is second to the last. What was the tenth plague? It was when the angel of death comes and kills the firstborn Egyptians. And if we go back to Exodus 10 and we look at this ninth plague, there’s a clear theological connection between the darkening of the days and the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart.
So, as I look at Revelation 8, I don’t think this is just a mere astronomical event or sign. Instead, I think it signifies the darkening and hardening of human hearts. One-third of humanity has become darkened against its Creator. That picture doesn’t sound so distant, does it?
It’s at this point that there’s a transition within the text, in verses 1-2 of chapter 9. It says “and the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from Heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft.”
Remember, stars are best understood as angels. The first star brings bitterness. The second
star brings what? He opens the abyss.
I want to make a brief comment on the cause of evil within this passage. In verse 1, a passive verb is used to indicate that God gives permission to an angel to open the abyss. Why does that matter? God does not open the abyss.
The Lord allows the affliction of the earth, and these woes even serve His righteous judgment. But it’s important for us to note in this chapter and throughout Scripture, God does not cause evil. 1 John 1:5 says “God is light, and in Him there is no darkness, none at all.”
And what we see in chapters 8 and 9 is that righteous angels are calling forth the judgments, human beings are polluting the earth with sin, and a fallen angel poisons the earth with bitterness. But it’s stressed throughout that we- created beings, humanity and angels- are
responsible for the evil that afflicts the world, not God. That’s crystal clear in this picture.
If we move forward to the fifth trumpet, it says, “Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given authority like the authority of scorpions of the earth. They were told not to damage the grass of the earth or any green growth or any tree, but only those who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
They were allowed to torment them for five months but not to kill them, and the agony suffered was like that caused by a scorpion when it stings someone. And in those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will flee from them.
In appearance, the locusts were like horses equipped for battle. On their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces, their hair like women’s hair, their teeth like lion’s teeth. They had scales like iron breastplates, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle. They have tails like scorpions,
with stingers, and in their tails is the power to harm people for five months.”
Positive and encouraging, right? If we look at the fifth trumpet, it mirrors the eighth plague of Egypt- the locust swarms. Yet it doesn’t take a gifted interpreter to realize these are not ordinary locusts. They’re hybrid beings. They look like a lion mixed with a human, locust and scorpion. They’re prisoners of the abyss, and they cannot harm physical objects like grass, green growth, or trees.
So who are they? They’re demons. And they’re not just any demons, the Scriptures tell us who these demons are. It’s important for us to remember that even the enemy himself is not confined in the abyss yet. So who are these demons? If we go to Genesis 6, 2 Peter 2, or Jude 6, we find out that these are uniquely wicked demons who were imprisoned for having sexual relations with human women. They’re the most wicked creatures to ever exist. And they’re being released within this passage.
Why are they described in this strange way? Well, in the ancient world, there was a mythological beast called a manticore, and guess what it looked like? Exactly like that. And manticores were mythic creatures feared within ancient India, Persia, and Greece. They were attested to by figures we would know, like Aristotle.
And what did they represent? The dark, spiritual oppression of humanity. And they appear as locusts because locusts do what? Devour. They destroy. This is a picture of the kingdom of darkness, consuming, disordering, and mutilating what God has made. It’s a picture of evil.
In verse 11, it says, “They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.”
Abadon is the Hebrew word for “destruction.” Apollyon means “utter annihilation” in Greek. Think about this picture. They have as king over them, destruction and utter annihilation. And if we look at Apollyon, this is related to this dumb pagan god we met in chapter 6 named Apollo.
And so this is really a picture of false worship and idolatry doing what it does, coming back to destroy those who commit idolatry. The false idols we worship will be the thing that destroys us.
And lastly, I want to just spend a moment looking at this. The enemy is not encaptured in the abyss. And in this passage, it says that the abyss has a king, which means the enemy is okay sharing power, as long as it works to the ultimate end of destruction.
And so if you’re in a spot where you’re like, man, I’m partnering with sin, it’s paying off in the short term, my life isn’t going that badly. Don’t assume that partnership with sin will pay off. Why? Because the enemy is willing to share power for a while, just as in the long run, it leads to destruction.
Who here’s ready for some good news? I am. If we look at verse 4, we find that these demons cannot touch faithful followers of the Lamb. It says, “They were told not to damage the grass of the earth or any green growth or any tree, but only those who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.” That means the Lamb protects his own. That means agents of the abyss cannot harm those who daily reside and abide in Jesus. Isn’t that good news?
As we move into the sixth trumpet, we’re going to go quickly. “The number of the troops of cavalry was two hundred million; I heard their number. And this is how I saw the horses in my vision: the riders wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur; the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire, smoke, and sulfur came from their mouths.
By these three plagues, a third of humankind was killed by the fire, smoke, and sulfur coming out of the horses’ mouths. For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; their tails are like serpents, with heads, and with them they inflict harm.”
The sixth trumpet brings forth an immense demonic army. And they are numerous. There are two ways you could render the Greek in verse 16: a very rigid way would be twice ten thousands of ten thousands- this could be the literal number two hundred million- or it could just be a Greek way of saying this army is so big it’s a twice uncountable number. Either way, what do we know? Without the Lamb, you cannot defeat this army.
And these beings are depicted as the chimera of ancient mythology.
Chimera were mythological creatures consisting of a lion, goat, horse, and serpent, all mixed up together. They were Indian and Persian in origin, and guess where they were really popular? In the folklore of that region- Asia Minor- where John’s churches are. And they represent the disorder of sin and evil’s disfigurement of God’s creation.
So if we look at all that and we ask, how do we put this mess together? What are we to draw from these chapters? If we look at verses 20-21, it says, “The rest of humankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands or give up worshiping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which cannot see, hear or walk, and they did not repent of their murders or sorceries or sexual immorality or their thefts.”
If we look at the total narrative of chapters 8 and 9, what we find is prayer leads to supernatural activity, supernatural activity leads to judgment, and what does judgment lead to? An opportunity for repentance.
And while the wicked world does not repent at the end of chapter 9, they begin to at the end of chapter 11, which shows us that the aim of Heaven for the earth and its people is this: repentance. Why do we pray? So that people would repent and turn to Jesus.
Within Revelation 8 and 9, we also find two processes. We find the pattern of Heaven, where prayer mixes with incense, leading to supernatural activity, and we find the pattern of Hell, where bitterness mixes with smoke, leading to demonic activity.
What is our response to be? What is our pattern to be? We are to be a people governed by Heaven and who participate daily in prayer. If our reaction to this world under judgment is anything less than prayer, then we’re aligning ourselves with the bitterness of an enemy kingdom.
What can bitterness look like? Well, I’ll tell you some of mine: hatred, fixation, fear, and panic, wondering if I need to go buy and hoard toilet paper right now, posturing, obsession with politics, to use an old 90s term, prepping for the apocalypse. What do all those things do? They partner with bitterness instead of God’s Kingdom.
If we look at Revelation 8 and 9, we find that prayer is the language of Heaven, not bitterness. Prayer invites the supernatural, not bitterness. Prayer is what changes the world, not bitterness.
And I’m sure if you, like me, looked out at the American church right now, what would your response be? I see a lot more bitterness than I see prayer. That’s the problem. We have to get back in the game and start revealing Jesus through the way we pray.
If I see anything in chapters 8 and 9, it’s that God has placed us here to partner with His heart of compassion and pray for what we see. There’s only one reason why we’re still here. God didn’t put us here so that we could live a nicelife, save some money, get a retirement account, play golf on the weekend, have six grandchildren and just generally have a nice life.
The Lord speaks through Peter and says, the reason why we are still here is because the Lord is patient and just, and He desires that none would be lost and all would turn to repentance. If you’re wondering, why has God left me here? He’s left you to pray and contend for His Kingdom so that the world would repent and find Jesus. That is what this book is all about.
I think the right response would be to pray, don’t you?
Lord, as we look at chapters 8 and 9, we repent of any areas- I repent of any areas- where I’ve partnered with bitterness instead of prayer.
Lord, You were the One Who told us how to pray and that the aim of prayer is that things could be on earth as they are in Heaven. So Lord, convict Your people. Convict us to be a people of prayer, who respond to frustration with prayer, who respond to the chaos of a world under judgment with prayer, who respond to when the enemy is doing his work destroying our world; we don’t choose bitterness, we respond with prayer, and we petition the One Who is truly sovereign and truly powerful.
Lord, let us be a people of prayer. And let the way we live reveal You, Lord. We commend these chapters to You. Teach us what we are to read, hear, and obey, and in all things, reveal Yourself. We ask this in Your name, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
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