6-23-19 One Loud Trump Revelation 9:1-12
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Introduction:
—The Church Herald reported that Charles G. Finney, a young lawyer, was sitting in a village law office in the state of New York. Finney had just come into the old squire’s office. It was very early in the day, and he was all alone when the Lord began to deal with him.
“Finney, what are you going to do when you finish your course?”
“Put out a shingle and practice law.”
“Then what?” “Get rich.”
“Then what?” “Retire.”
“Then what?” “Die.”
“Then what?” And the words came tremblingly, “The judgment.”
He ran for the woods a half mile away. All day he prayed, and vowed that he would never leave until he had made his peace with God. He saw himself at the judgment bar of God. For four years he had studied law, and now the vanity of a selfish life, lived for the enjoyment of the things of this world, was made clear to him.
Finney came out of the woods that evening, after a long struggle, with the high purpose of living henceforth to the glory of God and of enjoying Him forever.
From that moment blessings untold filled his life, and God used him in a mighty way, not as a lawyer but as a preacher, to bring thousands to conversion over a useful period of fifty years.
It was not too late for him… We are now approaching the point in Revelation where it is getting too late.
Transition:
We ended Rev 8 last week in the middle of Trumpet Judgments, and there is this announcement that came after the 4th Trumpet:
Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”
As with other “mid-air” announcements in this book (Rev 14:6; 19:17), this one also declares a coming judgment. In this context, the eagle (or perhaps vulture-- T.R. records an angel) symbolizes coming destruction (e.g., Jer. 4:13; 48:40; Ezek. 17:3; Hosea 8:1; Hab. 1:8). The bird of prey pronounces impending judgment on “those who dwell on the earth/the inhabitants of the earth,” a phrase used ten times in Revelation to depict unbelievers who oppose God and persecute his people. The three “woe,” are a bit like the “woe oracles” used in the O.T. Prophets, proclaims the certainty of God’s judgment on those who rebel against him. More specifically, the three “woes” correspond to the three trumpet judgments to come.
Scripture Reading:
Today, we will focus on the Fifth Trumpet in Revelation 9:1–12
1 And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit.
2 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.
3 Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth.
4 They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
5 They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone.
6 And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.
7 In appearance the locusts were like horses prepared for battle: on their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces,
8 their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth;
9 they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle.
10 They have tails and stings like scorpions, and their power to hurt people for five months is in their tails.
11 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.
12 The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come.
The fourth trumpet was a plague of darkness, a regular symbol of judgment and destruction in the Bible (e.g., Isa. 13:10–11; Joel 2:1–2; Amos 5:18). Now we see how dense and thick that spiritual darkness can be with the final trumpet judgments. After the first four trumpets, where God’s judgments are poured out primarily on creation (8:7–12), now an eagle warns of three approaching “woes” and links them with the final three trumpet blasts (see 9:1, 12–13; 11:14). In the fifth and sixth trumpets, God judges unbelievers (i.e., the “earth dwellers”), who respond with a stubborn wickedness and refuse to repent (Rev 9:20–21).
Transition:
So what do this fifth Trumpet sound like? It sounds like:
I. A HORRIFIC Personal Reality (vv.1-2)
I. A HORRIFIC Personal Reality (vv.1-2)
A star is describe with a third-person personal pronoun:
And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit.
Although falling stars can represent demons or even Satan (e.g., Jude 13; Luke 10:18; Rev. 12:9), here the descending star is likely an angelic messenger sent from God as an agent of judgment similar to what we saw in Revelation chapter 1; although we cannot rule out that this angel fallen could be indeed satan, himself.
God stands in sovereign control over the entire universe, the satanic underworld included, and he gives this angel-star the key to the opening of the “Bottomless pit/Abyss,” ἄβυσσος a word used seven times in Revelation to refer to the abode/prison for the demons and demonic locusts; Apollyon, the king of the locusts (9:11); the beast (11:7; 17:8); and even Satan (20:1, 3) (also used in Luke 8:31; also 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6).
Whether this angel is satan, we can deduce from this that
Satan is a Real Personality-- He exists in this universe and his power is very real. He is not a myth; there is a very real Devil. Isaiah refers to him as “Lucifer” meaning “brilliant star"
He Is A Fallen Personality
The word “fall” is a perfect tense verb, which means it refers to something that took place in the past which still has present results. (Luke 10:18b Jesus said:) "... I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven."
Satan is not in Hell & is not there today—He is the “prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2) but he will be sent away permanently one day.
[[Rev. 20:10]]
and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
3. Satan has more power than you or I have, but praise the Lord, God is far more powerful than Satan will ever be!
(1 John 4:4b) "... greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."
So this angel is Given a Key BY YHWH to the Bottomless Pit—Is YHWH really using hell and demons for His judgment?!
YES!
God sometimes uses evil powers to judge evil people
In a somewhat similar way in healthcare, when a disease is deadly enough, sometimes we will risk anything for a cure. Many have experienced the devastation of chemotherapy in treating cancer. It has been said that chemo nearly kills those it is meant to save. Interestingly, we can trace the origin of this chemical treatment back to a chemical weapon used in World Wars I and II—mustard gas! Apparently, it took something lethal to humans to kill cancer.
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.
It's a place of darkness, smoke and torment. It is the Holding Place for the Most Evil Angels
Transition:
So it is A HORRIFIC Personal Reality that satan and hell are both very real. But also this trumpet sounds like:
II. A HELLISH PLACE (vv.3-6)
II. A HELLISH PLACE (vv.3-6)
John draws on both the eighth plague against Egypt (i.e., the plague of locusts of Exod. 10:1–20) and the invading army of locusts in Joel 1–2 to describe this hoard of scorpion-locusts intent on torturing anyone not protected by the seal of God (see Rev. 7:1–8).
3 Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth.
A. Described as Locusts, but Not the Ordinary Kind - They have the power of scorpions in their tails (v.10)
They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
These locusts do not eat the vegetation (v.4)
The locusts can harm only people without the mark of God in their foreheads -- the Tribulation Saints are kept safe by God -- Believers are saved and sealed by the Holy Spirit
Quote: Revelation, by Grant Osborne.
Even the demonic forces can do nothing, unless God allows it! Many have the mistaken opinion that Satan has autonomy from God and can do whatever he wishes. That could not be further from the truth. Satan is powerless and has already lost at the cross (see 5:6). Everything he and his followers do in this book can only be done after God gives permission. Even more than that, all the actions of the evil forces are part of the divine will, thus part of the divine plan.… As in God’s control of the four horsemen of 6:1–8, however, God does not have to command the demonic locusts to do anything; he simply allows their evil to express itself.
These Demons Hate Humanity. They seek to destroy humanity, but God controls their terror and limits their power. YHWH is completely sovereign over the forces of evil
They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone.
The verb for “torture/torment” (βασανίζω) and the noun translated “agony/torment” (βασανισμός) used in 9:5 reveal the intensity of the pain and suffering. Here is another indication that God sometimes permits evil agents (demons) to bring judgment on evil human beings (the inhabitants of the earth), but their powers are limited and always serve God’s sovereign purposes. The time period of “five months” proves to us it is a controlled, limited period of time.
Quote: Revelation, by Craig Keener. This New Testament scholar comments:
Evil rulers have their “hour” … then they and ultimately their empires fade. From the short vantage point of our individual lives, justice seems delayed; from the long perspective of history, however, the power of oppressors is always brought to an end.… God remains sovereign even over choices made by evil empires.
In the end, God always defeats evil
Even though the time is limited, unbelievers will suffer enormous psychological and spiritual pain from the demonic assault.
And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.
People will desire to die but will be unable to (v.6) Ironically, though they seek death, death runs from them, and they are unwilling to repent in order to find life (see 9:20–21). This is one form of God’s answer to his people’s prayers for justice. Those who have tortured the saints will themselves experience the painful consequences of God’s justice.
Praise YHWH that Believers Will be Protected
Illustration:
Everyone here I trust knows the popular Children’s Story: The Three Little Pigs with the three houses made of different materials as the big bad wolf huffs & puffs. As Christians, we have been promised the solid brick wall of God’s protection when the world and Satan huff and puff and try to blow our house down. But we must take care not to open the door!
God’s people are protected against demonic attack
Transition:
SO now we truly have “hell on earth” but the last sound of this 5th trumpet is:
III. A HORRENDOUS PLAGUE (vv.7-11)
III. A HORRENDOUS PLAGUE (vv.7-11)
John starts describing more details to this plague and he starts by what these locusts look like:
In appearance the locusts were like horses prepared for battle: on their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces,
They are Grotesque and Demonic
1. People have devised all sorts of fanciful explanations
2. But their description is likely more figurative, it's beyond our words for comprehension
3. Their stings will cause horrendous pain, with no relief
The gruesome appearance of these attackers, their origin in the Abyss, and the demonic character of their leader (v. 11) point to their demonic identity. John uses the Joel 1–2 background to combine human and animal-like features to describe these demonic monsters. These cunning and cruel creatures are being permitted to bring judgment upon those who oppose YHWH and persecute his people.
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.
These locusts have a king, Apollyon or Destroyer
The scorpion-locust army is led by “the angel” from the Abyss, which again, could be Satan himself or (more likely) one of Satan’s chief commanders. (Satan is named in Rev. 2:9, 13, 24; 3:9; 12:9; 20:2, 7.) This Satan-like king of the Abyss, appropriately named Abaddon (Hebrew for “the place of death and destruction”) or Apollyon (Greek for “destroyer”), he leads his demon army to carry out judgments permitted by YHWH against the unrighteous.
So What?
So What?
Us believers need to remember that God has protected us against demonic attack. The trumpet judgments only affect the “those who dwell in the earth” (i.e., unbelievers). God protects or seals His own people against these judgments. We might suffer persecution and even death, but we will never suffer the wrath of God.
The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come.
YHWH’s Judgments will get worse!
On the one hand, some Christians flirt with sinful behaviors that are sometimes tied to demonic activity. Those of us here who are believers in sin need to be warned of the dangers of dabbling in idolatry and immorality. On the other hand, many of us here live with an unhealthy fear of unseen spiritual powers, and we need to be reminded that YHWH will protect us from demonic attack. Satan is God’s opponent but not God’s opposite, with equal abilities and powers. Satan is a dangerous, yet a defeated, enemy.
We’ll see next week especially--YHWH desires for idolatrous, immoral people to repent
It is easy to affirm the truth that God wants idolatrous, immoral people to repent and think only of people “out there.” For a moment, consider this: we dabble with idolatry. Each one of us has placed something at the center of our lives even just this last week. In the coming week, commit to finishing each day with a simple prayer, “Lord, please show me what kind of idol I bowed down to today.” Then, take a moment to prayerfully repent and ask for God’s protection and empowerment to faithfully follow Him.
Conclusion:
Why does the Lord give us these graphic descriptions of death and destruction?
There are at least three solid reasons:
So that we will know what we have been saved from.
As a warning to those who have not trusted Jesus as their Savior.
So we will be motivated to share the Gospel with the lost before it is too late.
God’s judgments will fall on those who rebel against Him and persecute His people.
The people of YHWH are sealed or protected against these demonic judgments.
God is sovereign over evil forces and can even allow evil to bring judgment upon evil.
God limits his judgments, desiring that the wicked will repent.
Amen