Revelation 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. (KJV)
Our verse is at the end of the fifth angel sounding his trumpet and is the first WOE. The whole section is from 8:13 to 9:12. I will study the parts involved in this section and leave the apocalyptic predictions to works of fiction, Hollywood, favorite study Bibles, and the makers of all of those great study boards I have seen. The cryptic nature of the Book has taught me one great truth – Jesus is coming again when the Father says it is time to get His Bride.
So, I will start at Revelations 1:1 which states that John got this revelation of Jesus Christ (Man-God) from God to show what would happen. I know that some of Revelations has not happened yet, but we tend to forget it was written for churches in Asia in the first century. The Holy Spirit was giving wisdom and comfort to our brothers and sisters who were about to go through a very bad time.
- Strong’s Greek: 602. ἀποκάλυψις (apokalupsis) — an uncovering (biblehub.com)
- Websters Dictionary 1828 – Webster’s Dictionary 1828 – Revelation
Abyss – The shaft that is “bottomless” or the place of the dead. The first use of this word is in Luke 8:31 where Legion is begging to not be sent there. (They know it is coming.) The second place we find it is in Romans 10:7 with the thought of Jesus going and getting the Keys back. The other seven references are in Revelations starting at 9:1 and going to 20:3. See ἄβυσσος | Free Online Greek Dictionary | billmounce.com and search Strong’s G12. The NASB uses Abyss nine times.
Abaddon – It is the Hebrew word for destruction or ruin and refers to the being that is in charge of that. Please remember some of the readers had Hebrew roots. The verse compares him to Apollyon for the Greeks. Abaddon is found mostly in Job, Psalms, and Proverbs.
Apollyon – The Holy Spirit gave John this interesting name to use in this verse. It may refer to the Greek god Apollo but that is unclear. His function as ruler over those locusts that sting like scorpions is clear.
Revelation 9:11 MOUNCE – They have as king over them the angel – Bible Gateway
Apollyon Meaning – Bible Definition and References (biblestudytools.com)
Strong’s Greek: 622. ἀπόλλυμι (apollumi) — to destroy, destroy utterly (biblehub.com)
Five Months – This part of the study was fun. As I am leaning toward this being a teaching tool for the first-century Church as well as it being something in the future, I started in the Bible.
- Elizabeth, John the Baptist’s mother, was in seclusion for five months before Mary showed up in the sixth month of her pregnancy. Okay, that one left me with nothing.
- There are two 150-day periods associated with Noah’s flood. One month = 30 days in the Hebrew scheme of timekeeping. See Genesis 7 and 8; take a look at Genesis 911 and Noah’s covenant. At least this one deals with destruction, but I was left treading water with this reference also.
- The siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. lasted five months. Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE) – Wikipedia Rome did it in five months, it took Babylon about twenty-three months in Jeremiah 52. Yes, this took place during John’s lifetime, but Revelation 12 also seems to have taken place. How does this fit into a nice timeline? It does not, but I can imagine the people in Jerusalem praying really hard. Is there more to come? It sure seems that way. I would bet that by the time John got this revelation that reference would have made sense to his readers.
- My ink and leaf concordance (Strong’s, 2001) identifies five months as the lifespan of the insect. The internet says from 3 to 5 months for the adult stage and around 7 months for the entire life cycle.
Woe! Woe! – Depending on your translation you might find woe or alas. It appears to be the same Greek word ouai, Strong: G 3759. You will find this word in Matthew, Luke, and Revelations; Mark may have one also. Revelations 8:13 has an eagle flying and announcing that three “woes” are coming. The first woe is 9:12, the second woe is 11:14, and the third one we will explore. The woe to the earth and sea in 12:12 somehow seems caught up in the first two. (Those four are translated as woe in Mounce and the KJV.) The three alas/woe in chapter 18:10, 16, and 19 are all about Babylon and are repeated or written as “Woe, Woe”. So, we have the locust (possibly the Romain army), the two witnesses, and the fall of Babylon as the three woes. Many say Babylon in this chapter is Rome, which at the time was a major shipping giant. Was John writing about the fall of the mighty Roman Empire just a few hundred years in the future? Is there a second layer in this prophecy, probably? A symbol of ancient Rome was the eagle (8:13). Wow, I would love to go over all the metaphors and opinions about those two witnesses, but I will say we have not seen them yet.
Locusts – These insect and arachnid hybrids that come from the Abyss are something else. I have heard physical and metaphorical explanations. The Greek word is Strong’s G200 for locust and G4651 for scorpion. I am pretty sure that John the Baptist would not eat these creatures. A DNA splicing experiment gone wrong would be way too simple. For their adult lifespan, they don’t eat, their purpose is to make humans miserable who do not have the seal of God on their lives. Just like in Exodus 10, these things leave God’s children alone.
A look into our Old Testament shows that locusts can have several descriptors so there is more than just one reference in the Strong’s Concordance – H697, H2284, H1357, H5556, H6767.
Well, the fifth angel blowing his trumpet and the first woe introduces us to a global event that releases a terrifying problem for those who do not think about Father God and reveals their king. What strength, comfort, and understanding did it bring to the first Christians who read John’s words? I am not sure, but it worked because the Church grew and prospered. What lessons are we to learn from them and these prophetic words? I know enough to say it starts with Jesus and echoes Paul’s word in 1 Corinthians 1:30 –
It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. (NIV)
Mark's Bible Study 