Revelation / Chapter 9

Revelation 9

21 verses • SBL Greek New Testament

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Revelation 9 describes the fifth and sixth trumpet judgments — the first two 'woes.' The fifth trumpet (vv. 1-12): a star fallen from heaven opens the shaft of the abyss, releasing smoke that darkens the sun and air, and from the smoke emerge locust-like creatures with scorpion power. They are commanded not to harm vegetation but only those who do not have God's seal on their foreheads. They torment people for five months but do not kill them; people will seek death but not find it. The locusts are described in terrifying composite imagery — faces like human faces, hair like women's hair, teeth like lions' teeth, breastplates of iron, wings like chariots rushing to battle. Their king is the angel of the abyss, named Abaddon in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek. The sixth trumpet (vv. 13-21): a voice from the golden altar commands the release of four angels bound at the great river Euphrates, prepared for a specific hour, day, month, and year, to kill a third of humanity. A cavalry of 200 million with horses bearing lion heads and serpent tails kills through fire, smoke, and sulfur. Yet the rest of humanity does not repent of their idolatry, murders, sorcery, sexual immorality, or theft.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The locust vision draws on Joel 1-2 (the locust plague as the Day of the LORD), but transforms natural locusts into supernatural beings of torment. The composite description — combining human, animal, and military features — is characteristic of apocalyptic symbolism and should be rendered as written, not decoded into specific modern equivalents. The Euphrates River was the eastern boundary of the Roman Empire and the traditional invasion route from Parthia, Rome's great rival — the sixth trumpet evokes the terror of invasion from beyond civilization's borders. The chapter's climax is theological: despite all these judgments, the survivors do not repent (vv. 20-21). The purpose of judgment is to provoke repentance, but the human heart resists.

Translation Friction

The composite imagery of the locusts defies naturalistic interpretation and should be rendered symbolically as John describes it. The number 200 million (dismyriades myriadōn, literally 'two myriads of myriads') is an enormous figure that may be symbolic of an incalculable army rather than a literal count. The names Abaddon/Apollyon are translated in the text itself; we retain both names as given.

Connections

Joel 1:2-2:11 (locust plague), Exodus 10:12-15 (Egyptian locust plague), Daniel 7 (composite beasts), Genesis 15:18, Deuteronomy 1:7 (Euphrates as boundary), Isaiah 5:26-30 (invading army from afar), Jeremiah 51:27 (armies from the north), Psalm 115:4-8, 135:15-18 (idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, wood).

Revelation 9:1

Καὶ ὁ πέμπτος ἄγγελος ἐσάλπισεν· καὶ εἶδον ἀστέρα ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ πεπτωκότα εἰς τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ ἡ κλεὶς τοῦ φρέατος τῆς ἀβύσσου.

The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from heaven to earth, and the key to the shaft of the abyss was given to him.

KJV And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The star (astera) is personified — 'him' (autō) — indicating an angelic or demonic being, not a literal celestial body. The perfect participle peptōkota ('having fallen') indicates a completed fall, not one in progress — this star has already fallen. The 'abyss' (abyssou) in Revelation is the prison of demonic forces (cf. 11:7; 17:8; 20:1-3). The 'shaft' (phreatos) suggests a well or pit with a covering that can be opened and closed. The divine passive edothē ('was given') indicates that even this destructive action operates under God's permission.
Revelation 9:2

καὶ ἤνοιξεν τὸ φρέαρ τῆς ἀβύσσου, καὶ ἀνέβη καπνὸς ἐκ τοῦ φρέατος ὡς καπνὸς καμίνου μεγάλης, καὶ ἐσκοτώθη ὁ ἥλιος καὶ ὁ ἀὴρ ἐκ τοῦ καπνοῦ τοῦ φρέατος.

He opened the shaft of the abyss, and smoke rose from the shaft like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke from the shaft.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The smoke (kapnos) obscuring sun and air recalls the pillar of smoke at Sinai (Exodus 19:18, 'Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace'). The same vocabulary (kaminos, 'furnace') appears in both passages. But whereas the Sinai smoke signaled God's presence, this smoke releases destructive forces — a dark inversion. The darkening of the sky by smoke continues the darkness motif from the fourth trumpet (8:12).
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Draws on Exodus 19:18. Consult the TCR rendering of that passage for the underlying Hebrew and the rationale for key translation choices.
Revelation 9:3

καὶ ἐκ τοῦ καπνοῦ ἐξῆλθον ἀκρίδες εἰς τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐταῖς ἐξουσία ὡς ἔχουσιν ἐξουσίαν οἱ σκορπίοι τῆς γῆς.

From the smoke, locusts came down on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The locusts (akrides) emerge from the abyss, not from the natural world — they are demonic entities in locust form. Their power is compared to scorpions (skorpioi), combining two of the most feared creatures in the ancient Near East. The divine passive edothē ('was given') again emphasizes that their power is delegated, not inherent. The locust plague echoes Joel 1-2, where a devastating locust invasion prefigures the Day of the LORD.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Joel 1-2 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.
Revelation 9:4

καὶ ἐρρέθη αὐταῖς ἵνα μὴ ἀδικήσουσιν τὸν χόρτον τῆς γῆς οὐδὲ πᾶν χλωρὸν οὐδὲ πᾶν δένδρον, εἰ μὴ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους οἵτινες οὐκ ἔχουσιν τὴν σφραγῖδα τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπὶ τῶν μετώπων.

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.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Natural locusts devour vegetation; these supernatural locusts are commanded to leave vegetation alone and target humans instead — a complete inversion of natural behavior that marks them as demonic rather than natural. The exemption of those with God's seal (tēn sphragida tou theou) connects directly to the sealing of the 144,000 in 7:3-4. God's servants are protected from demonic torment even in the midst of worldwide suffering.
Revelation 9:5

καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτοῖς ἵνα μὴ ἀποκτείνωσιν αὐτούς, ἀλλ' ἵνα βασανισθήσονται μῆνας πέντε· καὶ ὁ βασανισμὸς αὐτῶν ὡς βασανισμὸς σκορπίου, ὅταν παίσῃ ἄνθρωπον.

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 a person.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The five-month period (mēnas pente) may correspond to the typical lifespan of locusts (roughly May through September). The torment (basanismos) is agonizing but not lethal — a carefully limited judgment. The verb basanisthēsontai ('they will be tormented') is the same word used for the testing of gold in fire and for the interrogation of prisoners. The scorpion sting comparison specifies the type of suffering: intense, burning pain that incapacitates but does not kill.
Revelation 9:6

καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις ζητήσουσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι τὸν θάνατον καὶ οὐ μὴ εὑρήσουσιν αὐτόν, καὶ ἐπιθυμήσουσιν ἀποθανεῖν καὶ φεύγει ὁ θάνατος ἀπ' αὐτῶν.

In those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.

KJV And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The double statement — seeking death, longing to die — emphasizes the extremity of the torment. Death personified as fleeing (pheugei, present tense — it keeps fleeing) inverts the normal human experience where death is the pursuer and life flees. This echoes Job 3:21 ('who long for death, but it does not come, who search for it more than for hidden treasure'). The irony is that those who 'dwell on the earth' (the ones opposed to God throughout Revelation) sought security in earthly things; now even death offers no escape.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Job 3:21. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.
Revelation 9:7

καὶ τὰ ὁμοιώματα τῶν ἀκρίδων ὅμοια ἵπποις ἡτοιμασμένοις εἰς πόλεμον, καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς αὐτῶν ὡς στέφανοι ὅμοιοι χρυσῷ, καὶ τὰ πρόσωπα αὐτῶν ὡς πρόσωπα ἀνθρώπων,

In appearance the locusts were like horses prepared for battle. On their heads were what looked like crowns of gold, and their faces were like human faces.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The description begins a composite portrait that combines features from Joel 2:4 ('They have the appearance of horses; they gallop along like cavalry'). The repeated use of hōs and homoios ('like, resembling') — at least seven times in vv. 7-10 — maintains the visionary quality. John is describing what he sees in terms of the closest analogies he can find. The 'crowns of gold' (hōs stephanoi homoioi chrysō) suggest authority or victory, though the qualifier 'what looked like' indicates they are not actual crowns. Human faces suggest intelligence or cunning.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Draws on Joel 2:4. Consult the TCR rendering of that passage for the underlying Hebrew and the rationale for key translation choices.
Revelation 9:8

καὶ εἶχον τρίχας ὡς τρίχας γυναικῶν, καὶ οἱ ὀδόντες αὐτῶν ὡς λεόντων ἦσαν,

They had hair like women's hair, and their teeth were like lions' teeth.

KJV And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The hair 'like women's hair' (hōs trichas gynaikōn) may refer to the locusts' antennae, which could suggest flowing hair, or may evoke a sense of the uncanny — a blurring of categories that makes these creatures more disturbing. The lion's teeth echo Joel 1:6 ('It has the teeth of a lion, the fangs of a lioness'), directly linking these creatures to Joel's locust-plague prophecy. The combination of human faces, flowing hair, and predatory teeth creates a composite that is deliberately disorienting.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Joel 1:6 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.
Revelation 9:9

καὶ εἶχον θώρακας ὡς θώρακας σιδηροῦς, καὶ ἡ φωνὴ τῶν πτερύγων αὐτῶν ὡς φωνὴ ἁρμάτων ἵππων πολλῶν τρεχόντων εἰς πόλεμον,

They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of many horse-drawn chariots rushing into battle.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The iron breastplates (thōrakas hōs thōrakas sidērous) suggest invulnerability — these creatures cannot be fought or stopped. The thunderous sound of their wings echoes Joel 2:5 ('like the noise of chariots, they leap over the mountaintops, like the crackling of fire consuming stubble, like a mighty army drawn up for battle'). The cumulative effect of the description is of an unstoppable, invulnerable, terrifying army that combines the worst features of insects, predators, warriors, and supernatural beings.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Echoes Joel 2:5. See the TCR's OT rendering for the Hebrew behind this passage and the translation rationale.
Revelation 9:10

καὶ ἔχουσιν οὐρὰς ὁμοίας σκορπίοις καὶ κέντρα, καὶ ἐν ταῖς οὐραῖς αὐτῶν ἡ ἐξουσία αὐτῶν ἀδικῆσαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους μῆνας πέντε.

They have tails and stings like scorpions, and in their tails is their power to harm people for five months.

KJV And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The description circles back to the scorpion imagery of verse 3, creating a frame around the composite portrait. The five-month period is repeated from verse 5, confirming the limited duration. Their power (exousia, 'authority') resides in their tails — the part that delivers the sting. The description has moved from head to tail: golden crowns, human faces, women's hair, lion's teeth, iron breastplates, chariot-wing sound, and scorpion tails — a top-to-bottom portrait of supernatural terror.
Revelation 9:11

ἔχουσιν ἐπ' αὐτῶν βασιλέα τὸν ἄγγελον τῆς ἀβύσσου· ὄνομα αὐτῷ Ἑβραϊστὶ Ἀβαδδών, καὶ ἐν τῇ Ἑλληνικῇ ὄνομα ἔχει Ἀπολλύων.

They have as king over them the angel of the abyss. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

Ἀπολλύων Apollyōn
"Apollyon" — destroyer, one who destroys

From apollymi ('to destroy utterly'). The name functions as both a title and a characterization — the ruler of the demonic locusts is identified by his essential nature: destruction.

Translator Notes

  1. Both names mean 'Destroyer' — Abaddon from the Hebrew root '-b-d ('to perish, destroy') and Apollyon from the Greek apollymi ('to destroy'). In the Old Testament, Abaddon is a place — the realm of the dead (Job 26:6; 28:22; 31:12; Psalm 88:11; Proverbs 15:11; 27:20). Here it becomes a personal name for the ruler of that realm. Some scholars see a wordplay on Apollo (Apollōn), the Greco-Roman deity claimed as patron by several Roman emperors — if so, this is a subversive identification of the imperial god with the king of the underworld. Proverbs 30:27 states that 'locusts have no king,' making these supernatural locusts a deliberate contrast to natural ones.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Job 26:6. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.
  3. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Psalm 88:11. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.
  4. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Proverbs 15:11. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.
  5. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Proverbs 30:27. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.
Revelation 9:12

Ἡ οὐαὶ ἡ μία ἀπῆλθεν· ἰδοὺ ἔρχεται ἔτι δύο οὐαὶ μετὰ ταῦτα.

The first woe has passed. Two woes are still to come after this.

KJV One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. This editorial interjection marks the structural division of the three woes announced by the eagle in 8:13. The fifth trumpet = first woe; the sixth trumpet = second woe (11:14); the seventh trumpet = third woe (11:15ff). The phrase 'two woes are still to come' (erchetai eti duo ouai) maintains the escalating tension — if the locust plague was only the first woe, the remaining judgments will be worse.
Revelation 9:13

Καὶ ὁ ἕκτος ἄγγελος ἐσάλπισεν· καὶ ἤκουσα φωνὴν μίαν ἐκ τῶν [τεσσάρων] κεράτων τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου τοῦ χρυσοῦ τοῦ ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ,

The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar that is before God,

KJV And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The voice comes from the golden altar of incense — the same altar where the saints' prayers were offered in 8:3-4. The connection implies that the sixth trumpet is a response to those prayers, specifically the martyrs' cry in 6:10 ('How long...until you avenge our blood?'). The 'four horns' (tessarōn keratōn) of the altar are the projections at its four corners (cf. Exodus 30:2-3), where sacrificial blood was applied. The SBLGNT brackets tessarōn ('four'), as it is absent in some manuscripts, but the reading is well-attested.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Exodus 30:2-3 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.
Revelation 9:14

λέγοντα τῷ ἕκτῳ ἀγγέλῳ, ὁ ἔχων τὴν σάλπιγγα· Λῦσον τοὺς τέσσαρας ἀγγέλους τοὺς δεδεμένους ἐπὶ τῷ ποταμῷ τῷ μεγάλῳ Εὐφράτῃ.

Indeed, declaring to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the remarkable river Euphrates.

KJV Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. These four angels (tous tessaras angelous) are distinct from the four angels of 7:1 who hold back the winds — these are 'bound' (dedemenous), suggesting they are malevolent beings restrained by divine authority. The Euphrates (Euphratē) was the traditional eastern boundary of both the promised land (Genesis 15:18; Deuteronomy 1:7) and the Roman Empire. Enemies from beyond the Euphrates — Assyria, Babylon, Parthia — were the archetypal invading threat throughout Israel's history. The release of these angels symbolizes the unleashing of forces from beyond the boundary of the known world.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Echoes Genesis 15:18. See the TCR's OT rendering for the Hebrew behind this passage and the translation rationale.
  3. [TCR Cross-Reference] Echoes Deuteronomy 1:7. See the TCR's OT rendering for the Hebrew behind this passage and the translation rationale.
Revelation 9:15

καὶ ἐλύθησαν οἱ τέσσαρες ἄγγελοι οἱ ἡτοιμασμένοι εἰς τὴν ὥραν καὶ ἡμέραν καὶ μῆνα καὶ ἐνιαυτόν, ἵνα ἀποκτείνωσιν τὸ τρίτον τῶν ἀνθρώπων.

So the four angels were released, who had been prepared for this hour, day, month, and year, to kill a third of humanity.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The fourfold time specification — hour, day, month, year — emphasizes divine precision. These angels were prepared for this exact moment (hētoimasmenoi, 'having been prepared' — perfect passive, indicating prior divine arrangement). The killing of 'a third of humanity' (to triton tōn anthrōpōn) escalates beyond the trumpet pattern of damaging a third of creation to the direct killing of a third of the human race. Where the fifth trumpet tormented but did not kill, the sixth trumpet kills on a massive scale.
Revelation 9:16

καὶ ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν στρατευμάτων τοῦ ἱππικοῦ δισμυριάδες μυριάδων· ἤκουσα τὸν ἀριθμὸν αὐτῶν.

The number of the mounted troops was two hundred million; I heard their number.

KJV And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The Greek dismyriades myriadōn literally means 'two ten-thousands of ten-thousands' — 200,000,000. This number far exceeds any ancient army (the entire Roman Empire may have had only 50-70 million inhabitants). The staggering figure likely represents an innumerable, overwhelming force rather than a precise count. John specifies 'I heard their number' (ēkousa ton arithmon autōn) — the number was told to him, not counted by him, underscoring its symbolic character.
Revelation 9:17

καὶ οὕτως εἶδον τοὺς ἵππους ἐν τῇ ὁράσει καὶ τοὺς καθημένους ἐπ' αὐτῶν, ἔχοντας θώρακας πυρίνους καὶ ὑακινθίνους καὶ θειώδεις· καὶ αἱ κεφαλαὶ τῶν ἵππων ὡς κεφαλαὶ λεόντων, καὶ ἐκ τῶν στομάτων αὐτῶν ἐκπορεύεται πῦρ καὶ καπνὸς καὶ θεῖον.

And this is how I saw the horses in the vision and their riders: they wore breastplates the color of fire, dark blue, and sulfur yellow. The heads of the horses were like lions' heads, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and sulfur.

KJV And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The breastplates are described by three colors matching the three agents of death: fire-red (pyrinous), dark blue like hyacinth (hyakinthinous, the deep blue of smoke), and sulfur-yellow (theiōdeis). Fire, smoke, and sulfur (pyr kai kapnos kai theion) recall the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24-28), establishing this as divine judgment. The lion heads continue the predatory imagery — these horses are weapons, not transport. John frames this as 'what I saw in the vision' (en tē horasei), reminding the reader of the visionary medium.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Draws on Genesis 19:24-28. Consult the TCR rendering of that passage for the underlying Hebrew and the rationale for key translation choices.
Revelation 9:18

ἀπὸ τῶν τριῶν πληγῶν τούτων ἀπεκτάνθησαν τὸ τρίτον τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἐκ τοῦ πυρὸς καὶ τοῦ καπνοῦ καὶ τοῦ θείου τοῦ ἐκπορευομένου ἐκ τῶν στομάτων αὐτῶν.

By these three plagues a third of humanity was killed — by the fire, the smoke, and the sulfur coming out of their mouths.

KJV By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The three destructive agents are called 'plagues' (plēgōn), the same word used for the Egyptian plagues in the Septuagint. The identification of fire, smoke, and sulfur as distinct 'plagues' formalizes what verses 15 and 17 described visually. The repetition of 'a third' (to triton) maintains the pattern established throughout the trumpet sequence — severe but not total destruction.
Revelation 9:19

ἡ γὰρ ἐξουσία τῶν ἵππων ἐν τῷ στόματι αὐτῶν ἐστιν καὶ ἐν ταῖς οὐραῖς αὐτῶν· αἱ γὰρ οὐραὶ αὐτῶν ὅμοιαι ὄφεσιν, ἔχουσαι κεφαλάς, καὶ ἐν αὐταῖς ἀδικοῦσιν.

For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails, for their tails are like serpents, with heads, and with them they inflict harm.

KJV For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The horses are deadly at both ends — fire from their mouths and serpent-tails that bite. Like the locusts of verses 7-10, the description defies natural categories. The serpent tails (homoiai ophesin, 'like snakes') add another layer to the composite imagery and may evoke the primordial serpent of Genesis 3. The description of tails 'having heads' (echousai kephalas) is deliberately unsettling — these are creatures designed to harm from every direction.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Echoes Genesis 3. See the TCR's OT rendering for the Hebrew behind this passage and the translation rationale.
Revelation 9:20

καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, οἳ οὐκ ἀπεκτάνθησαν ἐν ταῖς πληγαῖς ταύταις, οὐδὲ μετενόησαν ἐκ τῶν ἔργων τῶν χειρῶν αὐτῶν, ἵνα μὴ προσκυνήσουσιν τὰ δαιμόνια καὶ τὰ εἴδωλα τὰ χρυσᾶ καὶ τὰ ἀργυρᾶ καὶ τὰ χαλκᾶ καὶ τὰ λίθινα καὶ τὰ ξύλινα, ἃ οὔτε βλέπειν δύνανται οὔτε ἀκούειν οὔτε περιπατεῖν,

The rest of humanity, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands or stop worshiping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood — which cannot see or hear or walk.

KJV And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. This is the theological climax of the chapter — the purpose of judgment was to provoke repentance, but the survivors refuse to turn. The critique of idolatry (ta eidōla ta chrysa kai ta argyra kai ta chalka kai ta lithina kai ta xylina) echoes Daniel 5:23 and Psalm 115:4-8 / 135:15-18, which mock idols that 'have eyes but cannot see, ears but cannot hear.' The list of materials descends in value (gold, silver, bronze, stone, wood), suggesting the absurdity of exchanging the living God for increasingly worthless substitutes. Behind the idols stand 'demons' (daimonia) — the worship appears religious but serves destructive spiritual realities.
  2. [TCR Cross-Reference] This verse quotes Daniel 5:23 — see the TCR rendering of that passage for the Hebrew source text and translation decisions.
  3. [TCR Cross-Reference] This verse quotes Psalm 115:4-8 — see the TCR rendering of that passage for the Hebrew source text and translation decisions.
Revelation 9:21

καὶ οὐ μετενόησαν ἐκ τῶν φόνων αὐτῶν οὔτε ἐκ τῶν φαρμάκων αὐτῶν οὔτε ἐκ τῆς πορνείας αὐτῶν οὔτε ἐκ τῶν κλεμμάτων αὐτῶν.

And they did not repent of their murders, their sorceries, their sexual immorality, or their thefts.

KJV Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Four sins are listed alongside idolatry from verse 20: murders (phonōn), sorceries (pharmakōn), sexual immorality (porneias), and thefts (klemmatōn). The Greek pharmakōn (from which 'pharmacy' derives) refers to the use of drugs, potions, and spells — sorcery in the ancient world often involved pharmacological substances used in magical rituals. These four sins roughly correspond to violations of the second table of the Decalogue (murder, false worship through magic, adultery, theft). The double statement of non-repentance (verses 20 and 21) frames the human response as tragically, stubbornly defiant in the face of overwhelming evidence of divine power.
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