Fifth and Sixth Trumpets (Revelation 9:1-21, Luke 10:18-20)

I am so proud of our military, and all those who are working together to defeat terrorists overseas. Thank you!  I can't do much, but I can pray.  I got this e-mail from GodTube, the song the soldiers are singing is from Revelation, Ezekiel, and Exodus.  

Troops singing (link)

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank You again for Jesus sacrifice.  Thank You for Your Word.  I lift up all those soldiers fighting to protect justice and rightness. Please keep them safe and send encouragement to their families.  We look forward to Jesus return riding on the clouds.  No more pain, no more fear, You are our hope and our salvation.  I pray for Your blessing on Israel.  I continue to lift up our president for wisdom and also for other world leaders.  Please bless Ukraine with peace and safety.
In Jesus Name, Amen.

I hope no one is giving up on Revelation.  There is good news coming up soon.  My spiritual gifts are in intercessory prayer (healing), evangelism and encouragement.  So this is a real challenge!  It's good for me to think this through and understand again what God is telling us through this Book of the Bible.

Fifth Trumpet:  The Locusts from the Bottomless Pit

1 Then the fifth angel sounded:  And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the bottomless pit. 2 And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace. So the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit.
My first thought with this is a reminder of the fall of satan.  It sounds like God cast satan out of Heaven and left him in a pit.  Here's what Jesus told the disciples:

18 And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. 20 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven."
(Luke 10:18-20 NKJV)

3 Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 4 They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 And they were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months. Their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man. 6 In those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will desire to die, and death will flee from them.
Verse 4 refers to to the 144,000 who have the seal on their foreheads.The number, "7" is the holy number of God.  That's the number we want on our foreheads- His seal.  We don't quite understand if the number is symbolic or literal.  The number of the beast/satan is "6".  We've heard of the punishment by God for those who take the seal of satan.  People will want to die but won't be able to.  Sounds like everlasting torment instead of love.


7 The shape of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle. On their heads were crowns of something like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. 8 They had hair like women's hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. 9 And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots with many horses running into battle. 10 They had tails like scorpions, and there were stings in their tails. Their power was to hurt men five months. 11 And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon.
Abaddon/Apollyon is Satan.  He is the ruler of lies and corruption.  He believed he should be God.

12 One woe is past. Behold, still two more woes are coming after these things.
Ok we're almost through this chapter.

Sixth Trumpet:  The Angels from the Euphrates

13 Then the sixth angel sounded:  And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 14 saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” 
The river Euphrates was the one going through Babylon.  This was a place where all satanic cults originated.  If you remember the awful story of Jezebel's death, she was one of their citizens at one time.  She was a terrible woman who brought corruption and occult worship to Israel.

15 So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind. 16 Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them. 17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision:  those who sat on them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfur yellow; and the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and brimstone. 18 By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which came out of their mouths. 19 For their power is in their mouth and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they do harm.

Verses 20-21 are so sad.  The people who did not turn to Christ for forgiveness and a new start continued on in evil practices.  They're minds were left in a fog.  Fear and abuse happened everywhere.  Such a dark place.  It would be so hard to get up each day with no hope or joy.
20 But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. 21 And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.
(Revelation 9:1-21 NKJV)