LOCUST FROM HELL
“And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.” (Revelation 9:2-6).
These cannot be literal locusts (vs.-3) for locust, as we know them, have an aversion to fire and smoke. However, these live in that inferno which darkens the sun. These are unlike any locusts this world has ever seen. They have power in their tails to sting as scorpions and they have no interest in the green grass or the trees. They overlook those with the seal of God in their foreheads and torment only those men without it.
No doubt there is a connection to Ezekiel 9:4-6 concerning these seals, “And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.”
The assignment of the locust is to torment men and women for five months. Their torment is described as the sting of a scorpion. Anyone who has ever been stung by a scorpion can imagine the agony these must endure day and night for five months. The pain will drive men mad. Those who are stung will seek death and will not find it. Satan said of Job, “all that a man hath will he give for his life.” Here, all that a man hath, he would be willing to give for death.
There will be other believers on the earth at this time besides the 144,000. The question is will they suffer these torments along with the wicked. Will these torments be local within the kingdom of the beast or are they universal? It is my belief that it will be within the kingdom of the Beast. It will be known in their day. It is also possible there is another seal of God besides the one on the 144,000
“And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. 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. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. 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.” (Revelation 9:7-11).
These verses give additional details of these demonic mutations. Their shape is as that of horses prepared for battle. They have counterfeit crowns, as and like gold. Their faces are as men (hardened) and hair as women (long). They have sharp teeth as lions. Their breastplates are of iron. The sound of their wings as chariot horses running to battle. They are an imitation of the living creatures in chapters 4 and 5.
They have a king over them, which makes them unlike the locusts of the earth. Proverbs 30:27 says the locusts of this earth, “…have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands.” This king is called the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon. His name means a destroyer. We are told the name of this king, and that his domain is the bottomless pit. If he is not the Devil himself, he is his servant and leads this mighty army. He may be that spirit-beast which enters the Antichrist, who comes from the pit at the three and one-half year point of the Tribulation.
The following two “woes” compose the contents of the sixth and seventh trumpets.
